Sealed Lips
by JennaBennett
Summary: Castle and Beckett are all too adept at secret keeping so it stands to reason that they should be able to keep their relationship under wraps. Post Always. Clearly not a one shot any longer...
1. Chapter 1

_Sealed Lips_

**AN: This takes place a little after 'Always' and assumes Beckett is firmly back at the precinct – which we all know is inevitably going to happen… It **_**is**_** a crime/cop show after all.**

**Let me know what you think! **

Alexis is under the strictest instructions not divulge a word about the change in her father and his detective's relationship. Beckett is not sure of the exact speech Castle gave his daughter, but she caught something about loss of birthrights at the tail end of the conversation. It's not that they don't explicitly want it out in the open, it's just that it complicates things – a lot. Especially where Gates is concerned. It's a mess of bureaucracy that Beckett really does not want to become entangled in. They've made it four years with all this tension bubbling just under the surface, surely they can make it – hmm, the rest of her career? – with no one catching on. It's a solid plan. Foolproof. Plus, it keeps Beckett out of the damn media and to be honest that's not somewhere she particularly wants to be. As much as Castle was disappointed at first that he couldn't run out and show her off to the world, she's convinced him that the stealthy cloaks-and-daggers approach is practically living the life of a spy. A very debonair spy, and since then he's been literally bouncing with excitement over the idea of leading an illicit double life complete with an oh-so-torrid love affair.

They have a minute of quiet solitude together in the elevator, leaning against the back wall, shoulders touching. She breathes in the coffee she's clutching and relishes the warm press of her body against his. A quiet sigh of contentment escapes her lips without her conscious permission. Castle shifts closer towards her, brushing his lips over hers. The kiss is quick, chaste and has a habitual sense to it, yet it somehow still sends tingles curling through Beckett's body.

"Castle," she warns, partly because he _knows_ the rules and partly because she _so_ wants to do it again. Damn him. Damn him and his perfect coffee laced lips. He shoots her a smirk in response, the blush crawling steadily up her cheeks probably isn't helping her restore the order. She wonders if she'll ever get used to finally be able to kiss him whenever she wants. Probably not. Even resolved there's still too much sexual chemistry sizzling in the air between them. She's pulled from her thoughts by Castle's fingers on her cheekbone, stroking…

"Have I mentioned how beautiful you look today?" he murmurs thoughtfully, his eyes unashamedly drinking her in.

"Several times," she replies, jaw tight, voice strained. Not that she's complaining, she's really not, it's sweet. She is, however, exercising all her self control to keep herself from jumping him in this small, _so small_, contained space. He's really not helping. She swats his hand away, he hums deep in his throat, taking it all in stride, linking their pinkies to rest in between their bodies as he pulls away. "What did we say about hands to yourself, Castle?" she remarks wryly – but doesn't move to pull her hand from his.

"Well, the thing is, Beckett… I don't think you realise how deeply you've penetrated my soul, _you_ are a part of me," he says it with all the sincerity in the world and Beckett has to bite her lip to keep from laughing. She isn't at all successful as a giggle bursts free, echoing loudly around the enclosed space. He beams at her reaction and she quickly tries to school her features into a quirked eyebrow. Castle sees right through her so she concedes and grins back at him.

"I didn't think even _you_ were capable of that level of sap," she teases, attempting to train her smile into a smirk. He shrugs melodramatically.

"What can I say? You bring it out in me, Detective." She hums gently in response, before noticing that they are seconds away from ascending the final leg to their floor.

"Foolish man," she adds, tacking on a quick, "I love you," as the elevator sounds their arrival. They reluctantly step apart, Beckett's comforted in the fact that they're still standing close enough for her to feel the heat radiating from his body. Although, by this stage she's that hyper-aware of him he could be standing at the other end of the building and she'd _still_ physically feel his presence. Hiding their relationship wasn't rocket science but it was still _hard_, especially in that undeniable physical sense. Sometimes she'd forget she was in the precinct and lean into him, unconsciously seeking his touch only to startle away seconds later often with a smirking Esposito or Ryan watching on. She'd just glare, roll her eyes or mumble something about being exhausted and they let it drop. It was fair enough, she'd seemed like she was in a relationship with Castle for years. Plus, she was fairly certain the boys expected Castle to alert them with a neon sign to a change in relationship status. They were going to be in for a little bit of a shock when the truth came out – only little though because after all, they'd all been hoping and desperately willing it to happen for years. It seemed inevitable, time the only thing in question.

As the elevator doors spring apart Ryan and Esposito swing into sight. Beckett masks her surprise at their proximity and is glad she managed to pull her hand from Castle's milliseconds earlier. The boys block them from exiting the elevator, stepping inside.

"We got a lead," Ryan offers by way of explanation. This elevator ride is sufficiently different to the previous one. For a start, Castle is silent for the most part and he isn't deliberately tempting her willpower which makes for a refreshing change.

"Oh, Beckett," he hums as they near the end of the descent. She shifts her gaze to him and waits for the punch line. "Alexis wants to see you, she says it's been too long, although I'm fairly certain she just wants to pick your brain about college. I've been giving her the rundown but apparently she doesn't trust her father's wisdom." It takes all of Beckett's strength to suppress the eye-roll she's aching to display in light of that ridiculous comment. Castle knows full well that she saw Alexis that morning, at breakfast, in the loft. He's really committing to this secret agent, double life charade though and apparently this is a ploy to highlight that Beckett has not been spending copious amounts of time at the loft.

"She'll be fine at college, Castle. I can talk to her though if she'd like. Just tell her to give me a call when she's free," she tries – _hard_ – to keep the sarcasm from her tone. Ryan and Esposito haven't felt the need to comment which is always a good sign. They like to throw their two-bits worth in every now and then – which loosely translates to at least several times a day.

"Great," Castle replies, he comes across as completely genuine without even trying. Beckett doesn't appreciate the smug undercurrent. "I'll text her now," he casually tacks on with a grin.

"That is _great_ of you, Beckett," Esposito mentions with a very deliberately quirked eyebrow.

"Yeah," Ryan adds, "It's nice to see you and little Castle getting on so well these days."

"Oh you know, we've bonded…" she pauses for effect as the boys – most of all Castle – look a little apprehensive, "…mmm, over the shared wealth of knowledge about the many idiotic things that make up Richard Castle." Let him mull over that one. He knows better than to be messing with her at work. He pouts and the boys chuckle. Serves him right, while their team loves Castle first and foremost they'll always be_ her_ boys.

They take the one car to the warehouse that Ryan has tracked the suspect to. Castle is under strict instructions to stay back and for once he at least pretends to listen. They're not expecting the suspect to be armed or dangerous in any capacity so he's doing an excellent job of keeping his overprotecting hovering contained. Beckett and the boys sweep the warehouse coming up clean. It's a bit of a shock as the lead seemed solid. She motions to her team with a shrug and they trug out into the alley. Castle has disappeared and Beckett groans. Can't the man just stay still for five minutes? Seriously.

"Castle," she shouts across the lot. No response, it's a little odd. He didn't have time to wander far. A resounding clang sounds down the alley adjacent to the rundown building and Beckett tenses. It's a strange noise, it sounds a bit like metal on metal. Ryan and Esposito signal her their intentions and move around the building in an attempt to head the suspect off. She takes the direct approach, cautiously moving into the alley, gun drawn. The sun doesn't reach into the latter half of the alley and it takes a second for Beckett's eyes to adjust to the shadows. She almost trips over Castle's prostrate form in the process. Oh god. She lowers her gun and drops to her knees, a strangled noise escaping her. "Castle," she breathes, gentling shaking his shoulders. The reaction is immediate. He stirs and offers her a bashful, albeit strained grin.

"Ah…Beckett, hi," he mumbles.

"Are you okay? What happened?" her voice is tight, concern etching over her features in stunning waves.

"Err…Umm…Well," he ruefully averts his gaze.

"Spit it out, Castle," she sighs, helping him into a sitting position. He rubs his forehead gingerly, wincing slighting at the action.

"I…uh…saw the coolest pigeon ever, it was almost completely white except for this big splotch of black on its back that was an _exact_ replica of the batman icon. So, I very carefully followed it in here to try and take a picture of it – it so would have gone viral on Twitter, Beckett! I wasn't exactly looking where I was going and I tripped over that pipe and hit my head on that bin. Guess it knocked me out for a second there. I did put my full weight into the fall…" he's rambling on and on…

"Hang on, a pigeon?" Beckett grits out incredulously. "A pigeon," she shakes her head. "I'm dating a child…"

"Sorry?" he offers tentatively before resuming rubbing the egg on his head. "Please don't be mad, Beckett, this is punishment enough as it is," he sighs.

"Hurts?" she asks, her tone softening. He merely nods and she purses her lips momentarily before conceding and pressing a gentle kiss to his injury. "All better?" He smiles, opening his mouth to respond, but he's cut off by –

"Oh Ryan, I just pulled my notepad from my pocket and sustained a paper cut," Esposito's tone has the clear markers of gloating.

"Dear, dear," Ryan replies shaking his head dramatically, "let me kiss it better." Ryan's face comes within millimetres of Esposito's hand before he whips it away.

"Hang on, that doesn't seem like platonic partner behaviour…" he teases, staring pointedly at Beckett and Castle, still on the floor of the grimy alley.

"You're right, bro, it doesn't," Ryan continues. "Hmm, what do you think that means?" he meets Beckett's gaze with a smug grin.

"Do you two have something you'd like to share with the class?" Esposito adds, stepping towards them, arms crossed, eyes clearly shining with unshed laughter.

"No?" Castle attempts weakly.

"Wrong answer, bro," he replies, shaking his head. "Wait, Ryan, did we leave something out? Oh, that's right…" both the boys mimic Beckett in unison, "I'm dating a child." Beckett groans into her hands. So much for plausible deniability. Castle face is plastered with a forlorn expression, Beckett knows it's because he's going to miss teasing her so that she'll be the one to slip and reveal their "double life".

"You know my favourite part?" Ryan says, turning to Esposito with a broad grin, "I think I just won the pool. Looks like my unborn children are going to be able to afford to go to college after all."

"Congrats man," Esposito offers his partner a brisk handshake. "I'm impressed, it's a highly sought after victory."

"I think the term prestigious has been thrown around…" he beams. Beckett shakes her head at the pair of them. Castle gently tugs on a strand of her hair, effectively gaining her attention.

"You know," he stage whispers, "we should start a new pool, which one of these idiots caves and tells Lanie first." Beckett frown shifts into a devious grin.

"My money's on Espo, the stakes are higher," she declares and her hands find Castle's and she tugs him to his feet.

"Definitely. He's _way _more scared of her," Castle adds gleefully, ecstatic that Beckett is playing along – partners, always. His hand naturally falls to her waist and he nudges her towards the cruiser leaving the boys in their wake with slightly slipped smiles.


	2. Chapter 2

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Two

Beckett groans, rolls over in bed and snatches her phone from the nightstand a second too late. She thumbs the screen and it flashes to life. Great, she missed a call from her father. She yawns, blinks at the screen and tosses the phone back. She'll just get five more minutes sleep and then call him back. It's not an unreasonable hour so she's fairly certain it's not an emergency. She hasn't spoken to her father in a couple of weeks now, he's probably just calling to organise a time to catch up and she can formulate a plan a lot more effectively when she's conscious and coherent. She hasn't told him about her relationship with Castle yet, a little because she hasn't really had the time to catch up properly. It's not like she's really made the effort to introduce boyfriends to her father over the past few years anyway, she's kind of past the awkward meet the parents stage of her life. Plus, introducing Castle as her boyfriend changes things, it's not so much a meet the boyfriend experience as a meet the only likely candidate for future son in law. She's never brought a man she fully intended on marrying home before. She definitely intends on marrying Castle. Not tomorrow, but someday. She is a one and done kind of girl after all.

It's as if Castle is in tune with her thoughts. He rolls over and pulls her tight into his chest, curling his body around hers. She pretty certain that he fully intends on marrying her someday too. She wouldn't be surprised if their was already a ring stuffed into his sock drawer or something. She's not going to search for it, not with the knowledge that in time it will be hers regardless. Best not to spoil her own surprise. She groans internally over her minds fixation on marriage, seriously, what is she, thirteen? They've been dating for weeks, barely even months and she's already obsessing over proposals and happily ever afters. Castle with his sunny disposition really has altered her life. She slips back into sleep, the five minutes more turning into ten, then thirty and then a resounding knock on the door of Castle's loft is rudely interrupting her slumber. She's never been one for sleeping in, but quality time with Castle is introducing her to the merits. She sleepily pries her eyes open, glancing at Castle's still sleeping form. Typical. She's the one who has to drag herself from bed to open the damn door to _his_ house.

She stumbles gracelessly from the bed and tugs on one of Castle's t-shirts before managing to find her own pyjama pants tangled on the floor. She pulls them on as well and makes her way through the loft to the front door. Usually she'd make the effort to check the peephole, but she's still drowsy and a little disoriented. She wordlessly jerks the door open and freezes.

"Dad?" she chokes out, her voice tight, strangled. He hums in greeting and she's suddenly so very aware that she's wearing a shirt with the cover of one of Castle's books emblazoned on it. Oh, and she's answering the door to Castle's loft with mussed bed hair and sleep in her eyes. She folds her arms self consciously across her chest and averts her gaze steadily to the floor. "What are you doing at Castle's home?" she manages to force out with a huff of breath.

"I could ask you the same thing," Jim answers solemnly. Beckett chances a glance to his face and finds his expression light and teasing. She relaxes and grins a little.

"You first," she smirks and ushers him in. She leads him to the kitchen. "Coffee?" He nods. She busies herself pulling mugs from the cabinet.

"You look very domestic," her father hedges. She rolls her eyes.

"Nope, you first," she demands gently.

"Mmm. Well, there was a fire in my street last night. Nothing too dramatic," he assures her as her expressions shifts from curious to panicked. "The smoke was quite thick in the air and the firemen advised most of us we might be more comfortable seeking alternate accommodation for the night. Give the air a chance to settle into a more breathable state."

"That makes sense," Beckett nods, listening intently to her father.

"Yes. So, I headed to your apartment and made use of the spare key you gave me. I waited up for a little while but reasoned you were just having a late night at the precinct. Imagine my surprise when I woke up in the morning and you still hadn't come home," he teases softly. "I decided to stop by the precinct and say hi before heading home…But you know what?" he pauses for dramatic effect, "you weren't there either."

"Ah huh," Beckett sighs, placing a steaming cup of coffee in front of her father. "So, you thought you'd just wander over to Castle's and check if I was there next?"

"Well…Yes," her father grins. "Worked out pretty well too. Here you are," his smirk widens.

"Hmm, here I am," she concedes.

"Your turn," he prompts. She lets loose a steady sigh and opens her mouth to explain, but Castle emerges from the bedroom, rubbing his hands over his face and completely ignoring his surroundings.

"Beckett," he whines, "why are you out of bed? Come back. I want to snuggle…" he voice fades away as he draws his hands from his face and takes in the occupants of the kitchen. "Oh god," he murmurs, before stumbling slightly, his face pale. Beckett emits a pained groan as the blush rises steadily up her cheeks. "I…ah…sorry?" Castle offers, his voice high-pitched and panicked.

"Sit down, son," Jim chuckles, pulling a stool from under the kitchen counter and patting it encouragingly. Castle staggers to a seat beside him. "Katie, get the man a coffee," he smiles. Beckett obliges shooting Castle an apologetic glance as she places the mug before him. He manages a tight smile in response. "Anything you'd like to tell me, Katie?" Jim hedges with a smug little smirk. At least someone appears to be enjoying the emotionally scaring experience. Beckett is half expecting Castle to pass out, he's still deathly pale and his slack-jawed expression does nothing to instil confidence in her.

"Fine, yes, Dad…Castle and I are dating now. Clearly, it's not that much of a shock to you considering you showed up here looking for me," she berates jokingly. Jim beams at that –

"I'm happy for you both," he exclaims, clapping Castle on the shoulder. He shudders under Jim's touch and Beckett shakes her head at her father. "So, just tell me one thing?" Jim adds, his tone suddenly serious. Beckett worries her bottom lip between her teeth and Castle hopes that his attempt to not look like a terrified teenager is coming across as genuine. "Do I need to start looking around for a sophisticated suit to walk you down the aisle in?"

Beckett is biting down on her lip – _hard_ – to contain her laughter, she can't disguise the humour shining brightly in her eyes. Jim lets out a thundering chuckle. Castle is surprised. With the hardships Jim has endured, the loss of love, the loss of life to the bottle, he sometimes forgets that Beckett's dry, biting humour stems from this man. Jim is gazing between them, clearly expecting one of them to form at least some semblance of an answer to his teasingly prying question.

"Dad," Beckett chides lightly, throwing in an eye roll for good measure, "just waiting for Castle here to man up and ask me," she shrugs. Castle chokes on the coffee he's sipping with a snort. Both the Beckett's chuckle at him. It doesn't need to be said that the reality is the ball's totally in Beckett's court. Castle's been ready to propose to her for years.

"I'm not sure how well we could keep it from Gates if we got married," Castle mentions with a quirk of his eyebrow.

"When…" Beckett intones softly, with a wistful expression clouding her countenance.

"Huh?" Castle replies quizzically.

"You said 'if'…It's 'when', Castle," she smiles.

"When," he affirms with a broad grin, stretching his hand across the counter to grasp hers gently, rubbing soft circles along the back of her hand. "When," he repeats, the joy evidently shining on his face. Jim watches the interaction with a soft chuckle.

"I best be going," he grins, squeezing Castle's shoulder in farewell, "Rick."

"Jim, you're always welcome here," he nods.

"Come here and give your old man a hug, Katie," he motions, getting to his feet.

"Do you have to leave so soon?" she pouts, regressing to a childish version of herself momentarily, hugging him tightly. "Stay for brunch?"

"I can't. I'm a very busy man," but he pulls Kate back into his side once again as they walk towards the door. "I think I might head out suit shopping," he winks, swinging the door swiftly shut behind him. Beckett is left in the doorway with a slightly stunned expression. She shakes her head before drifting back into the kitchen and pressing a soft kiss to the top of Castle's head. Let her father buy a suit, it's only a matter of time now, they're too far along the path of the inevitable to ever turn back.

**AN: I so wasn't intending on updating this so quickly, if at all… However, seeing as fic writing is much more entertaining than university here we are. On that note, I've got at least another two chapters in mind. Please review! **

**One last thing, oh my god, White Pawn – you're back! I'm missed your stunningly gratifying reviews. Lovely to hear from you once again! **


	3. Chapter 3

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Three

Castle takes the coffees from the counter with a smile of thanks to the barista. Beckett has been in somewhat of a mood this morning and he's anxious to subdue her with coffee – funny how it works like that – before the day progresses any further. He spins and finds himself face to face with Josh. _Oh_. Great, that's not awkward at all. He curves his lips upwards in the makings of a polite smile. Josh responds in kind.

"Rick," he offers with a brisk nod.

"Hi Josh," Castle replies, keeping his expression neutral. He's kind of hoping the, 'I'm with Beckett, she loves me, I win, _I win_,' that's bouncing round in his brain isn't transferring to his expression at all. Josh opens his mouth, like he's about to say something. Castle gets it, really he does, he'd want to know how Beckett was doing too. But, Josh seems to think better of it and draws his lips back together. Mmm, yeah, it's really not so bad. Castle just needs to throw out some sort of farewell and he can be on his way, the strained interaction already forgotten. Solid plan.

There's a tinkle of a bell as the door opens, alerting the admittance of a new customer. Castle doesn't even have to time to blink before Beckett in on him, her lips pressed fiercely to his. Her hands rise to steady the coffee so that she can press her lithe body further into his.

"Castle," she breathes, "you went to get me coffee. You beautiful man. Keep this up and I'll let you get to second base in the supply closet," she teases, her tone rich and sultry. She raises their joined hands to sip the coffee intertwined between them. "Thank you, love you," she sighs as the liquid scalds her throat in a manner that isn't at all unpleasant. Castle has remained steadfastly silent which is about as far from typical as he can be. She pulls back far enough to settle her gaze on him quizzically. Probably a little curious as to why he isn't kissing her back with the same level of enthusiasm as per usual. His eyes are fixed over her shoulder, unblinking. He has a weirdly apologetic expression that's infused with sheer uncomfortableness. Odd. Actually, now that she draws back from the single-minded focus of caffeine, she can hear the tail end of an odd high pitched groan being emitted from somewhere behind her. She pulls her coffee fully from Castle's grip and manoeuvres herself to his side to investigate just where that odd noise is coming from and why Castle looks like he's about to have a – _smug?_ – coronary.

_Oh god._

Josh. Her ex-excuse-of-a-boyfriend is standing before them, staring at their exchange with a somewhat strangled expression. She must have breezed straight past him as she rushed for coffee. She didn't recognise her own ex from behind? She'd just locked eyes with Castle – and _possibly _her caffeine fix – and the rest of the shop had faded away. How embarrassing. Honestly, she'd never counted on seeing Josh again. There was no need to. She'd thought the city was big enough for them to both go on with their lives – uninterrupted and unencumbered. Apparently not.

She offered Josh a weak and oh so tentative smile. They hadn't exactly parted amicably. Something about Beckett moaning, "I love you too, Castle," every time she drifted off into feverish post-surgery sleep. It wasn't something Josh entirely appreciated from his girlfriend. He'd thrown out an ultimatum in the heat of moment. Beckett hadn't taken even a moment to think it over – _him_, always him. She hadn't known about the dreams and sleep talking until that point, it was something Josh had spat out at her as they argued. She was secretly pleased that at least unconsciously she had her priorities straightened out, not the mention the sense to say it back. She'd kept that one bottled up way too long. At least they were here now. An awkward encounter with her ex didn't change anything. Still, both the men had their eyes trained on her. Clearly expecting her to direct – or mediate – or _something_ – the conversation. She chewed her bottom lip –

"Hi…Josh…how have you been?" she mumbles reluctantly, instinctively leaning into Castle for support. He shudders nervously for a moment under her touch, Josh's eyes burning with unwarranted distaste. Screw him. Beckett _is_ his. Or, more accurately, she'd chosen _him_. He relaxed into her side and wound an arm tightly around her waist. She lifted the corner of her lip in a tiny smile of appreciation aimed exclusively at him.

"Fine," Josh grunted in response, before clearing his throat and adopting a polite tone. "Really well, thanks, Kate. How was your recovery?" Beckett feels Castle's hand tighten almost imperceptivity on her waist at that. They haven't really discussed Beckett's break up with Josh and she can tell he's trying to keep from beaming at the news that Josh _wasn't_ around as Beckett's bullet wound healed. A little bit of residual angst from the summer they shared apart fades away at the knowledge. Beckett grimaces slightly as Josh's question causes her to relive memories of the dark days of her recovery, but after a moment a smile breaks through.

"It got a lot easier after the third month," she admits, nudging Castle gently with her shoulder. He can't mask his grin at that. He trails his fingers along her side, a silent thank you for her admission. She has to bite down on the inside of her lip to stop the delighted shiver that wants to break free at his gentle, grateful touch. Josh doesn't exactly miss the exchange…

"Good…" he smiles vacantly.

"Mmm. We've got to get back to the precinct," Beckett prompts, tugging Castle's hand from her waist to interlink their fingers between them. "See you," she offers to Josh.

"Uh, bye, Kate. It's nice to see you so happy," he acknowledges reluctantly, stepping past them to order at the counter.

"Bye," Castle echoes as Beckett leads him to the door. He jolts to a stop on the sidewalk, still in full view of the coffee shop. He yanks Beckett fiercely to him, kissing her possessively. It's hard and sloppy but neither of them care. "I never liked that guy," he declares as they rest their foreheads together, catching their breath.

"Neither did I," Beckett teases, brushing her fingertips over his lips. He growls a little at that, before branding her with his mouth once again. They pull back and simultaneously glance at the window to ensure that they look put together before returning to work. Beyond the thin plane of glass showcasing their reflections they meet the gaze of a profusely blushing Josh.

"Whoops," Beckett sighs, immediately averting her eyes as if burned. Castle keeps his gaze steady and releases a slow grin.

"Serves him right," he mutters gleefully, "all those times he touched you in front of me…" He trails away as Beckett levels him with a fierce glare.

"Play nicely, Castle," she murmurs, before matching his grin and seductively brushing her fingertips over the corner of his mouth to rub her lip-gloss from his skin.

"Hypocrite," Castle beams, lacing their fingers once again and starting in the direction of the precinct without so much as a second glance behind them. What does it matter what Josh thinks of them anyway? He's merely a fragment of the past with no influence over their future.

**AN: I don't like to commit to a multi-chapter fic unless I can update it daily – or near to – however, this one is about to become a little longer between updates. Hang in there! I just need to write an essay or two and then I'll be back. Feel free to suggest people/situations… To the anon reviewers who I'm unable to thank personally, I so appreciate your input! Thank you! **


	4. Chapter 4

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Four

Kate Beckett sighed and ran a hand through her hair as she rode the elevator to her apartment. Castle wasn't exactly ecstatic about her choice to spend the first night in many alone at her home. But she'd argued ardently for it, she just wanted _her_ bath and the chance to unwind. The days at the precinct had been long lately and she revelled in solitude to untangle the knots clouding her brain. She adored Castle, and the time she spent with him, which is why she hadn't spent a night at her apartment – by herself – for weeks now. He had begrudgingly conceded that a night apart was most definitely not the end of the world, or their relationship and even though he hadn't mentioned it, she knew with a certainty that he would be at her door with freshly brewed coffee before the sun had risen in the morning.

It wasn't that Castle was clingy perse, he was just smitten. Which to be honest, so was she – so what did it matter? There was a part of her that had decided if she still went to the effort of paying rent for her apartment she was inclined to spend at the very least one night – probably within the entire month – there. She stood at her front door, jangling her keys, finding the right one by touch. She'd given up all pretext of dinner, the plan was an indefinitely long soothing bath and bed. She liked Castle's bath, especially at the times when his body was pressed flush against hers, but there was something familiar, something innately comforting about her bath. It was trivial really, she mused to herself as she struggled with her lock. It took her a few twists to get the door to open, almost as if she locked and unlocked it multiple times. That was a little odd. It was probably confused from the misuse – or insulted. Doors definitely had a perchance for irritation. She was beyond exhausted if she'd come to the oh-so-logical conclusion that her door hated her for its lack of use.

Something about her apartment seemed not quite right as the light slowly brightened and illuminated the familiar room. She tried to remember if Castle had been here without her anytime recently. He'd come here alone a couple of times since they'd been dating to pilfer clothes for her and other various essentials. Nothing seemed out of sorts but she couldn't shake the niggling sensation in the back of her mind that something was _off_. Even so, she banished the thoughts to the back of her mind with a yawn and made her way to the bathroom to run the bath. The steady gurgling and rising steam settled her wandering mind and she ambled out to the kitchen to pour herself a glass of wine. She considered finding something edible to combine with the alcohol in her stomach but she really couldn't be bothered. She'd just have the one glass and head to bed anyway.

She stumbled jerkily as a loud crash startled her. The sheer volume of the noise made it seem like it had come from within her own apartment. Peculiar. It must have been the neighbours directly above her. She poured her wine and hurried back to the bath. There was something about being with Castle, and being so utterly exhausted that relaxed her. Usually her noisy neighbours would have unleashed her paranoia and set her on edge. Tonight, however, she was tired, deep, deep in her bones and investigating random noises was counterproductive to relaxation.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

Castle was petty enough to admit he missed Beckett more than he really had a right to. She'd been out of his presence for a grand total of hours and he honestly wasn't all that surprised she'd pressed for space. He was, however, a little shocked – pleasantly – that it had taken this long for her to request a night alone. It filled his heart with unspeakable joy that she was really in this. It didn't matter that she hadn't squealed and giggled with best friend about the change to their relationship status – in fact, months into their relationship, Lanie _still_ didn't know, only the boys and their families were privy to their romance. Oh, and Josh, awkward. It didn't grate on Castle as he expected to have to keep their relationship secret because little by little Beckett revealed to him just how much _her_ heart was invested in _them_. That was all that mattered.

He'd managed to use his time apart from Beckett productively, he was working on the latest Nikki Heat and the words were falling from his mind to the page without hindrance. He was on a roll. His phone ringing dragged him from the phrases running around in his mind.

"Castle," he answered with a grin, his tone bright. The voice at the other end was hesitant and shrouded by a tinny quality in comparison.

"Uh… Beckett interrupted a break-in in progress of sorts at her apartment," Ryan reluctantly admitted.

"Kate…" Castle choked out, all joy painstakingly stripped from his voice.

"Fine, she's fine," Ryan reassured as best he could. "Look, I thought you might like to know. She's busy giving her statement, but…" Castle didn't wait to hear the rest of the sentence –

"I'll be there soon," he forced out through clenched teeth. Whoever messed with his girl was going to damn well pay! He hastily – and rather aggressively, as aggressive as possible with a touch screen anyway, he'd never missed the ability to slam a landline more than in that moment – disconnected the call and sprinted out the door.

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Castle offered a swift nod to police presence in living room of Beckett's apartment as he strode through the door. It seemed half the Twelfth was there in support of one of their own, it appeared even Gates had made an appearance. He didn't stop to think about it, Castle locked eyes with Beckett and the rest of the room faded away. He dropped to his knees before her. His heart heavy and throat dry at the deep bruise settling over her left cheekbone.

"Move in with me," he gasped out through the lidded emotion clogging his throat. She smiled softly at him, a little confusion shadowing her eyes. "I won't be able to let you go home _alone_ ever again, Kate," he added softly.

"Castle," she started gently, flickering her eyes around the room, all too aware of their enraptured audience. She could tell Castle had forgotten about the other occupants of the room. His stricken gaze left her with no doubt that she was _all_ he could see. She threw caution to the wind, for god's sake, if she was going to move in the man – someday – she could _probably_ soothe his crazy fear. "I'm okay, really. I appreciate it, Castle, really I do, but not _yet_," she deliberately emphasised. He let out a strained sigh, his shoulders drooping further.

"Too soon. I understand. I love you so much, Kate. I can't bear the thought of anything happening to you," he admitted, his tone desperate, his hands rubbing up and down her thighs, convincing himself that she was really there, warm and safe before him.

"I know, I know," she soothed, bring her hands to cup his face. She directed his gaze to meet her eyes, "I love you too. We're okay." He let loose a shaky breath at her words, lifting his head from her hands to tentatively press a kiss to her purpled skin. She shuddered a little at the touch and he hastily withdrew.

"Sorry," he murmured. She quirked an eyebrow at him.

"Bruise, Castle. Basically means a no touch zone," but there was no bite to her tone. He nodded at her a little sadly with his big puppy dog eyes supplicating her for affection. "You know," she added biting her bottom lip suggestively, "my mouth isn't bruised…" He grinned at that, his expression lifting from the look of utter devastation at seeing her hurt that had been consuming him since he'd walked into the apartment. He pressed his lips fiercely to hers in a kiss of apology that quickly shifted to unadulterated want under the ministrations of her tongue. She reluctantly pushed him away as the kiss bordered on unfit for company – unfit for clothing altogether, really. He rested a breath away from her, waited for his heartbeat to slow to a normal rhythm.

A pair of feet filled shoes edged into his peripheral vision. The thought consumes him that he knows without a doubt that it's someone he knows. He has an eye for detail, seeking out the story and years of playing detective will do that. He fixates on them, tries to pick his mind as to who the occupants of the shoes are without bringing his eyes away from Beckett. He's man enough to admit that the events of tonight terrified him – rightly so – and he will not be averting his gaze from her until she threatens, or _actually_, shoots him.

"Detective Beckett," a hardened voice cuts through the post-kiss haze of staring deep into each other's eyes. Beckett sighs and leans back.

"Sir," she replies curtly, her tone stony and rigid. Castle startles a _little_, the squeak that falls from his lips as he jerks back from Beckett is albeit not the most manly reaction… This is much, _much_ worse than her father catching them after very obviously sharing a bed. Beckett doesn't flinch though and Castle has to admire her for her ballsy, no nonsense expression. Personally, he doesn't think he can feel his face. Also, he may have started sweating, profusely. Chances are it's not cute…or sanitary. Gates was the one person he was happy _never_ knowing about his relationship with Beckett. He was kind of hoping they could be married, or you know, _with child_, before subtly alerting Gates to their secret love. Apparently not. He was such a fool. Beckett was going to kill him. He'd nodded at Gates in greeting as he'd entered her apartment and everything. How had his stupid – _terrified_ – brain not managed to put two and two together? Gates was going to banish him from the precinct. Beckett would be pissed at him. She'd be sad he was gone at first, then some Tom Demming, Doctor-Motorcycle-Boy lookalike would sidle into the Twelfth and partner with her and steal her away from him and…

Beckett could see the sheer terror running rampant in Castle's mind. She knew he was conjuring up worst case scenarios that were entirely – _well, _it was Gates, maybe not _entirely_ – implausible. Neither noticed Gates smirk at the shock painted clearly across Castle's face.

"Detective Beckett," she started again, effectively ignoring Castle, her eyes trained unwaveringly on Beckett's face. "As you are well aware, romantic relationships between detectives who are partners are prohibited," she intoned sternly.

"I'm not that romantic," Castle choked out, falling far, _far_ away from humour.

"Mmm," Gates barely acknowledged Castle's words. "Sorry about your apartment. See you tomorrow, Detective, _Mister_ Castle," she finished, turning and walking away from the pair. Castle's jaw dropped dumbly open.

"Er…Ug…Did she just basically give us permission to date?" he managed at last.

"I think so," Beckett breathed with pure relief, before adding dryly, "you must have convinced her with your lack of romance."

"Hush woman," Castle grimaced. "That just fell out of my mouth. I argue shock."

"Hmm, ever heard of being shocked speechless?" she teased.

"The real take away from this," Castle grinned, "is that I was right. She really is starting to like me."

"I wouldn't count on it, Castle," Beckett replied with a quiet laugh. Castle shifted from the floor to the couch and wrapt Beckett somewhat gingerly up in his arms.

"What happened here tonight?" He asked softly. "Give me the play by play, why are you bruised and what the heck happened to your apartment…" Beckett, encapsulated by the man she loved, slowly filled him in on the events of the evening as the night slipped away from the pair of them.

**AN: I apologise profusely for the massive wait between updates! Thank you so much to everyone who's reviewed, alerted and favourited this story – you all are undoubtedly the best. I'll try not to go so long between updates. Although, no guarantees as I'm in my final semester of uni and didn't know it was possible to be this stressed… (Breathe, breathe). Ignore the rambling… Let me know what you thought about this chapter! **

**White Pawn, I seriously love you! For your honesty as much as your praise. In truth, I can't say I completely disagree with your review. Thank you. **


	5. Chapter 5

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Five

It's gotten to the point where she really should have mentioned something to Lanie sooner. She – _they_ – have left it too long now, to where it's at the stage where it would just be awkward to blurt it out in the middle of a casual conversation. This thing between her and Castle is so monumental and she _can't_ just randomly throw it out there. Lanie will be _insufferable_ once she knows. She'll harp on about not being told for so very long. Not only that, she'll drag it up every argument they ever have, "remember that time you didn't tell me for _months_ that you were dating Castle! You owe me, girl!" Mmm, yeah, Beckett doesn't want to put herself through that just yet. She's starting to come round to the idea of telling Lanie only when she has to ask her to be a bridesmaid. That should certainly buy her some time. Seems like the appropriate opportunity to mention it. Even so, her friend is damn good at shopping and she needs her help to find a dress for this thing of Castle's tonight. It's not like she and Castle will be publicising their relationship tonight, thus, she can just omit for Lanie's sake. What her best friend doesn't know will most certainly not hurt her.

Lanie is all too happy to meet her at the mall. They wander aimlessly, glancing in storefronts. The quiet, contemplative nature of their task doesn't last long.

"What exactly is this event tonight? How you and that man are not together yet is beyond me," she grumbles, her lips forming a distinct pout. Beckett studiously ignores the last part. Seriously, if Lanie is this fixated on the whole thing without knowing that they're dating she will be basically unendurable once she knows. _I told you so_ will pour from her lips like a never-ending waterfall. She'll start pushing for proposals and marriage and no, just no. Plus, she will squeal – a lot. She will reach decibels previously unknown to man. It won't be pretty. There is absolutely _no_ reason Lanie has to know yet. Beckett realises that she's forgotten to respond to Lanie at all and now the woman is staring at her like she's trying to decipher her thoughts, and from the smirk she's wearing there's a possibility she likes the idea of what she _thinks_ Beckett is mulling over.

"Lanie," she warns. "It's a book publicity thing, some sort of event. Castle just wanted a date to keep some of the stranger fans at bay," she shrugs.

"Oh, so that's all it is," Lanie drawls, a tad too condescendingly for Beckett's liking, "a _friend_ helping another _friend_ out. Sure."

"Ah huh," Beckett confirms. Lanie sighs.

"You two are hopeless. You better grab his handsome butt and kiss him soon. Don't make me take you back down to the morgue for another missed opportunities lesson," she presses.

"Will you just leave my personal life alone for five minutes and help me find a dress," Beckett sighs with a slightly exaggerated roll of her eyes.

"I will not be leaving your personal life alone anytime soon, Kate Beckett," she cautions. "I care, therefore I meddle. It's what you do for the people you love. Maybe you should meddle in Castle's personal life a little more," she adds with a wink. Beckett merely raises her eyebrows speculatively at her friend in response. She opens her mouth to throw out some sort of biting retort – she hadn't managed to formulate it exactly yet, but she was working on it, when Lanie throws her arm out, startling her to a halt. She clasps Beckett's shoulders and spins her in the direction of the store opposite them. "There," she breathes, "that dress is perfection. That man will not be able to keep his hands off you. Praise the Lord."

"It's nice," Beckett agrees, appraising the dress with her eyes.

"It's more than nice. Go buy it now!" Lanie grins.

"I'm going to go try it on, Lanie," Beckett chuckles.

"Yes, yes," Lanie shrugs, "I can tell that it's going to be perfect, but if you want to waste time trying it on, I suppose we can do that." Beckett leads her friend into the store with a half-smile at her enthusiasm. Lanie has a point, her figure is fairly similar to the mannequin and if it fits that well on the display then chances are it will sit nicely on Beckett too. Still worth trying it on though. She slides into it in the dressing room and comes out to spin for Lanie who emits appropriately gleeful oohs and ahhs. Suffice to say, Beckett buys the dress without hesitation. It's purple, simple and elegant yet somehow enchanting. She knows Castle will adore it and that alone prompts her to make the purchase.

"Would you like me to come over and help you prepare?" Lanie asks as they ready themselves to part ways out the front of the store.

"No thanks," Beckett smiles. "I'm going to spend the next hour or so in the bath. More of a solo event." Lanie doesn't really need to know that the majority of her makeup now lives at Castle's loft… That might bring up a couple of questions.

"Okay, girl," Lanie shrugs. "You have _fun_ tonight," she grins, leaving no question as to what exactly she means by _fun_.

"Mmm. Thanks for coming shopping with me," she pulls her friend in for a quick hug.

"Anytime. Fun, Kate Beckett, fun!" she calls after her as she walks away. Beckett studiously ignores her. Lanie has no idea about the fun she'll be having when Castle peels this dress from her later tonight. Fun is so not Kate Beckett's issue…

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She and Castle gravitate around one another as they ready themselves for the event in the loft. He keeps interrupting her process by pressing soft kisses to the top of her head as she carefully curls her hair into position. It's all so domestic and it leaves her with a slight smile she can't shake. There's just a simple joy in sharing this. It's the little moments that leave her breathless and wanting more, so much more. Maybe she should move in here with Castle like he'd asked last week after her break in. If the menial task of doing her hair seems so much more enjoyable with Castle around then what is there to lose? What's stopping her – _them – _from taking the next step? If she's honest with herself there's nothing really. They're both in this for the long haul, there's no denying that. She'll tell him, not tonight, but soon. Soon, she'll consent to move in with him. She can't help the grin that pulls at her cheeks at the thought. Castle pauses from fastening his cuff links.

"What?" he hedges tenderly.

"Just imagining your reaction to my dress," she winks sultrily.

"Tease," he huffs, but he's beaming. She knows that he likes that she considers his reaction to things. It gives him all the more reason to react. Not that he was understated about how physically attractive he found her before they started dating, but now he doesn't even try to contain his reactions. Her outfits have caused his jaw to drop many a times and she's become adept at reading the blatant lust and want that clouds his gaze. She shivers slightly at the memory. The way his eyes practically worship her, the adoration that shines from him as he watches her. It's intoxicating, overwhelming and everything all at once. She loves him so much. His words, she loves his words, but when he looks at her like that, she doesn't need his words – his eyes have a way of communicating it all.

As she emerges from the bathroom in her dress, it's no different. His eyes roam her hungrily, his expression slack-jawed. The lust is there, but it's so much more. His eyes help her to believe it when he tells her how much he loves her. There's no denying it when he looks at her like that. She tries to put everything into her answering gaze. She blushes a little under the intensity of it all, it's not embarrassment, just heat. There is _so _much heat. She almost doesn't want to go to this damn event where they have to play platonic and she can't have his hands over her all night. It's a very unique kind of torture. She's already looking forward to the cab ride back to the loft where she can finally claim him with her hands…her mouth…everything…

Despite that, she spends much of the cab ride _there_, swatting Castle's hands away from her body. He's determined to give her an unexplainable hickey before they make it to the event and she will not be having that. She shudders to think how people they know – for example, Lanie – will react if the _press_ finds out about their relationship before them. That would definitely be the worst case scenario. The press won't catch onto anything just by them attending an event together; it wouldn't be the first time. They've speculated for years as it is. If they play it safe – and Castle keeps his hands _and_ his hickeys to himself – then tonight won't change a thing in that regard.

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The event is so not going smoothly. Castle keeps looking at her from across the room like he wants to devourer her. Which, let's face it, she knows beyond a shadow of a doubt that he does. That knowledge isn't helping. She's pretty sure she's going to be pouring the ice cubes from her drink down her dress sometime soon if he doesn't stop unintentionally – it better not be intentional otherwise the man is going to _pay_ – leering at her. She's had enough. She's not going to make it back to the loft with her sanity intact at this rate. She needs some sort of release. It's time for her to have some Lanie-insinuated _fun_.

"Excuse me," she politely smiles at the couple she's been making rather pointless yet amiable conversation with. She measures her footsteps carefully, pretending to amble around the dance floor. Castle is still watching at her. He's attuned enough to her to know that she's subtly making a beeline for him. He excuses himself from Paula and Gina and a very boring discussion about a book tour and meanders deliberately towards Beckett. Her eyes smile at him as she notices that he's managed to disengage himself from conversation as well. They meet almost halfway, near the side of the room, hopefully a little away from prying eyes. "You're killing me here, Castle" she groans in a near whisper.

"No, you're killing me in that damn dress," he growls, his voice a little rough with desire.

"It's too early for us to just leave, right?" He nods begrudgingly at her question. "Okay, wait a minute then meet me in the hallway," she nods over her shoulder. He looks at her a little quizzically; they just ascertained that they can't leave yet. "I saw a door for stairs out there. No one will notice if we're only gone for a few minutes. Bathroom break, work related phone call…There's a whole slew of excuses," she smirks.

"Oh thank god," he breathes out in relief. "You are a genius," he enunciates each word with evident adoration. Her smirk shifts into a smile with that and she steps away from him and disappears out the nearest door and into the hallway. He tries to wait a minute but all it takes is ten torturously slow seconds and he's out the door in pursuit of her.

The door has barely swung shut behind him when she's clutching the lapels of his suit and dragging him into the stairwell. Not that she encounters any resistance to said dragging. He pushes her sharply against the wall, cushioning her head between his hands and latches his mouth fiercely to hers. She's pushing back against him, arching her back away from the wall and pressing her body flush with his. He devourers her mouth as reverently as his eyes have been doing all night. She's aching for him, her pelvis thrusting jerkily into his hips. She separates their lower bodies in an attempt to draw her fingers to the buckle of his belt. She catches on to it and works on prying it open without bringing her lips and eyes away from his. She almost has it when the door opens. Castle misses it, he's too focussed on the feel of her, alive and writhing under his touch. He's fairly certain there could be an earthquake and he would miss it.

"You're so gorgeous," he mumbles against her lips. "You are without a doubt the most beautiful woman in that room," he adds, his voice rich with adoration.

"That's funny," a voice cuts in, "he said the same thing to me once," Gina laughs coldly as she breezes into the no longer secluded stairwell.

"Hmm. You think for a writer he'd be more creative, original," Paula mentions glibly as she glides in behind Castle's ex-wife. Castle pulls angrily away from Beckett and steps in front of her – as if to protect her from the scene unfolding before her. She can feel the tension radiating off him. Even from behind she senses that if Gina tries anything he will not hesitate to throttle the woman.

"Oh calm down, Ricky," the blonde smirks. "It's true," she shrugs. "You _did_ say it to me."

"Well," Castle grinds out through clenched teeth. "I wouldn't have been able to say it if Beckett was in the same room." Beckett resists the urge to roll her eyes at that, she knows, really she does. She places her hand gently in between his shoulder blades. Hopefully, her reassurance will calm him down a little. Although, if Castle did snap and murder his ex-wife, Beckett would most certainly help him hide the body. She still remembers watching him leave for the Hamptons with the woman. Mmm, she's certainly not Gina's biggest fan. In fact, what the hell are these women doing in their stairwell? They were kind of in the middle of something. She'd like to get back to that. Now. Or even a minute ago. She nudges herself into Castle's side so that she can play a more active role in the conversation.

"Gina, Paula," she starts, her tone cool and measured. "We're actually in the middle of something, if you wouldn't mind," she nods at the door. Neither woman has the decency to leave. Gina crosses her arms and stares pointedly at Castle.

"This wasn't going on while we were still together?" she asks bitterly, looking down her nose at the pair of them. Castle opens his mouth to protest when Beckett's snarl rips through the room –

"If you have to ask that you do not know Richard Castle at all! Get out," she demands. Gina studies them a moment longer before dropping her defences.

"Fine," she sighs, and in that moment Beckett can see the insecurities that lay just beyond the confident woman's surface. She feels a little bit sorry for her. Not enough to actually drop her defensive pose, but enough to understand where the woman is coming from. It makes sense for her to suspect that. Castle has made no secret of his admiration for the detective – an entire book series probably doesn't help – and to see them like this, tangled around one another, their relationship clearly not public. Well, yeah, Beckett can empathise. Gina slinks from the stairwell, Paula holds the door open for her, pausing for a moment as she carefully studies them.

"Looks like I was wrong about it being something you could just get out of your system, Rick," Paula smiles softly.

"With all these best-selling Nikki Heat novels, do you really want it out of my system?" he deadpans.

"Mmm," she studiously ignores his tone and the anger rolling off him in waves. "I'm pleased for you both, really," she adds graciously. Castle softens a little at that –

"Thank you, Paula," he manages a little gruffly.

"Just let me know when I can release a statement to the press. It'll do wonders for the book sales," she adds cheerily. Beckett bites back the urge to roll her eyes. At least the woman is really invested in Castle's career, that's probably a good sign.

"We're just keeping it between _us_ for now," he emphasizes.

"Uh huh, you're doing a _really_ great job of that," she winks as she takes the final step from the room and draws the door to a close. Castle pivots his entire body towards Beckett.

"I am so, so, so, so sorry," he murmurs, tracing the planes of her face.

"It's fine, Castle. We're fine," she intones gently, pressing her lips to his jaw. "Can we please go home now? It's not like we have to bother playing it cool for your publicity team anymore."

"Oh god yes," he groans, tipping his face so that her lips drift to his.

**AN: Thanks for sticking with me guys! I'm a little overwhelmed by the alerts/faves, etc. I so adore this fandom. Just think of the gap between updates as me stretching out the story through the hiatus… I hate leaving it so long between updates, but well, real life can be slightly consuming. If you get bored, be sure to check out my other stories. As always, please let me know what you thought about this chapter! **


	6. Chapter 6

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Six

Kate Beckett studiously diverts her eyes from Castle to study the gaggle of women surrounding her in the slowly moving line. It's not the first time she's stood in line at one of his book signings – it is however, the first time since they've been dating. Every other time she's stood in this line, her focus has been fixed firmly on him, _Castle_ – whether as merely her favourite author or partner she had been desperately seeking reconciliation with. In the past, the others that shared her line had simply blurred away in her steadfast devotion of attention to the man himself. But now? As his _girlfriend_, she is filled with the sudden desire to unscrupulously watch the women interacting with him. She's not the jealous type perse. That said, somehow Castle manages to bring out sides in her that she never knew she possessed. Damn man. It was infuriating, really. So, this time was different, this time she watched – with a carefully schooled expression fixed firmly in place. That wasn't to say her teeth didn't slip to chew on her bottom lip from time to time as she attempted to keep from glaring.

The women – as for the most part they were, that wasn't to say Castle didn't have male fans, just the female ones seemed more inclined to stand in line for hours waiting for a hurried conversation and a scrawled autograph – waiting in the line, shared one major commonality, a copy of Castle's novel clutched tightly to their chests. There were a fair few who Beckett was inclined to believe weren't capable of reading said book – the ones with perfectly polished fingernails that seemed impractical for hasty page-turning action. She had to fight the desire to somehow cull the bottle-blondes from the line, they reminded her too much of the "type" that Castle typically went for – she knew she was buying into the publicity line with that one, _she_ was the type Castle went for, no one else. Still, she was in a slightly petty mood and they bugged the hell out of her.

She had to roll her eyes at the one currently standing before Castle, positioning her busty cleavage at eye level as she deposited the clearly brand new – and never opened – novel on the table. She was a blonde, Beckett wanted to slap her just a little bit – or, you know, shoot her. Probably wasn't the best idea. Acting like a jealous girlfriend didn't really help the cool, "just friends" image that they were perpetuating to the public/everyone in their lives who hadn't sprung them yet… That list was beginning to dwindle all too quickly for Beckett's liking. It was one thing her father accidently figuring them out, it was another thing when Thomas the night janitor walked in on them practically mauling each other in the supply closet. That had most certainly not been her shining moment…

_Castle kicked a bucket as he pushed Beckett into a shelf, the sound resonated loudly around the small room and he flinched as the sharp echo continued to reverberate. _

"_Whoops," he managed to gasp out in the seconds his mouth was away from Beckett's, because, you know, that breathing thing was kind of important every now and then. When Beckett's only response was to clutch him tighter and draw his lips back to hers he figured that he was forgiven. Beckett had promised herself and made Castle swear on his life – and manhood – that there would be __**nothing**__happening between them of an intimate nature in the precinct. Naturally, Castle had spent hours teasing her beyond belief. Her self-control had waned embarrassingly quickly. It didn't help that she wanted him so badly all the time. Neither did the fact that she knew how good they were together. He really had just been teasing, he hadn't even considered the possibility that it would work. _

_He was as surprised as she was when her resolve had snapped and she'd ordered him to join her in the supply closet with a hushed growl of – _

"_If you make me scream you will live to regret it for the rest of your life." So, he knew that subtly and silence was imperative and here he was kicking buckets. Plus, she'd started groaning and not exactly in a muted manner. He'd latched his mouth firmly over hers in an attempt to muffle the sound. It hadn't really helped, the way she was gripping him combined with the feel of her bare flesh under his hands as he jerked her shirt from her body had drawn echoing moans from him. Apparently quiet wasn't really their forte – not the biggest shock in the world considering Castle's general demeanour. Something about Beckett's closeted bad side had led him to believe that she wouldn't be the type for subtle whimpers and hushed words in the bedroom – he wasn't shocked to discover that he'd been correct in that assumption. _

_Although the noises they were currently emitting seemed contrary to it, they were being reasonably quiet in their attempt for intimacy in the supply closest. However, being a supply closet, it wasn't exactly spacious, there were an array of supplies and the like inside. Thomas, the reserved yet friendly night janitor usually worked with music blaring in his ears from his iPod and consequently wasn't put off by the grunting spilling into the hallway. The door burst open, Thomas bringing his hand to the light switch automatically and startling at the sight of them. Beckett, in her bra, chest covered only by the thin fabric and Castle's large hands. The worst part, already too lost in the sensations ruling their judgement, it took all of thirty seconds for Castle and Beckett to register the extra occupant to the room and stop undressing each other. She'd never seen Castle blush that fiercely before, or apologise that profusely for that matter. _

"_I'm sorry," he stuttered over and over, his face flaming as Thomas chuckled at them in his gentle way. As Castle floundered, Beckett tugged her shirt back on. As embarrassed as she was – she really wasn't – she had to suppress the burning frustration that she was __**frustrated**__. So close, but so far. _

"_It's okay, Mr. Castle," Thomas interrupted another string of apologies. "I have been watching the unresolved sexual tension for years, so now I accidently get to see the resolved, it happens," he shrugged. "It's nice when life comes full circle like that," he added with a wink. Castle gaped at him and Beckett smirked a little. She'd always had a soft spot for Thomas; the man knew the right words to say when yet again she found herself sleeping on the couch in the break room instead of heading home like the rest of her division in the dead of the night. He was right, it was probably nicer to see her like this than drained and emotionally wrought in the precinct after hours. _

"_Uh, the thing is, we're trying to keep it – us – a secret for the time being. Would you mind not saying anything…" Castle seemed to have recovered and was surprisingly eloquent. _

"_Hmm," Thomas furrowed his brow in consideration, "I may need something in return."_

"_Anything," Castle hastily breathed out. "Do you need money? An autograph?" Beckett had to clamp her lips tightly together to keep from snorting at that – Castle was trying to bribe the man, seriously? With his autograph of all things? Somehow she didn't see __**that**__ flying. _

"_Oh," Thomas nodded and Beckett could tell that he was trying to mask his expression, the man wanted to laugh at Castle as much as Beckett did. Naturally, Castle hadn't noticed. He was earnestly gazing at the man desperately hoping to reach some sort of amiable compromise – probably with excessive bribery involved. He was adamant Beckett was going to twist the ear from his head for getting them sprung at work. Not good. He needed to fix it. "Okay, I know __**exactly**__ what I want," Thomas started seriously._

"_Yes," Castle pressed, his tone bordering between pleading and whining. _

"_You need to promise me __**never**__, never to violate my supply closet again. Look, you've knocked all the bottles out of order," Thomas shook his head condescendingly at the pair of them, gesturing at the array of cleaning products haphazardly splayed across the shelf that Beckett was pressed into. "Such a mess," he sighed. Beckett couldn't contain her mirth any longer, it spilled over, leaving her clutching at her sides gasping for breath. _

"_God, Castle, you should've seen your face," she gasped as her laughter subsided. Thomas beamed at the pair of them. _

"_Seriously, get out. Now. Some of us have work to do," he muttered fondly, ushering them from the closet. _

"_Thanks Tom," she smiled, patting his shoulder gently as she passed him. _

"_I'm pleased for you kids," he tossed after them as they meandered down the hallway. _

_Beckett seemed to be in a reasonably good mood given the events that had just transpired, yet Castle was cautious. He was kind of waiting for her to reprimand him for getting them into that particular situation. Teasing her at work – although typical – was probably not the best move. He mentally braced himself for her coming wrath. She surprised him though, by simply leaning into his side with a soft sigh. _

"_Let's go home," she murmured, running her fingers down his arm to gasp his fingers for a moment before pulling away to tug on her coat. He kept silent, letting the casual fix of her collar with his hands answer. _

Beckett found a soft smile gracing her lips at the memory. She momentarily forgot about her fixation on the women surrounding her and lifted her eyes to Castle's table. He happened to lift his head from the table to smile politely at the fan before him and noticed her in the line as he did. The joy that infused his face as he caught her eye was infectious, she knew that she was unconsciously mirroring him. The pair of them sporting dopey, transfixed grins like a little kid laying eyes on his pile of presents first thing on Christmas morning. Real subtle, lucky denial seemed to work a treat.

Heads were beginning to turn her way, so she mouthed a quick, "_stop staring_," at him and dropped her gaze. When she pulled her eyes back to him moments later he was still staring at her, she rolled her eyes dramatically and dropped a hand to her hip. He released a silent chuckle before averting his gaze to the woman slightly impatiently dropping a book onto the table. Now that he'd noticed her though, he flitted his eyes to her between every swipe of his pen across a fresh book. She met his hurried glance every time, a small smile playing at the edges of her mouth the closer the line edged towards him.

Eventually the line before her dwindled and she handed her – his, _their_ – book to Castle as he beamed at her. His fingers lingered on her hand as he reached out to take the book stretched between them. His simple touch still managed to get her pulse racing, she echoed his grin.

"Detective," he murmured in greeting, wrenching his eyes from her face just long enough to scrawl a message in the book. He took his time signing, Beckett was certain she'd find more than his name when he handed it back to her. She didn't find it surprising, he liked words did her writer. Of course, he was also a man of action – but now was most certainly not the time or the place.

He brushed her fingers affectionately once again as he handed the book back to her. She clamped her jaw shut at the onslaught of emotion from the _love_ so clearly evident in his gesture. It seemed no time would quell the butterflies spiralling in the pit of her stomach every time his bare skin connected with hers. Their chemistry was electric, it was undeniable. Personally, she was so glad she'd given up denying it. This life they shared, cumbered by secrets as it may be, was still worth more to her than absolutely anything. So, she squeezed his fingers gently as he released the book and let her eyes light up with her utter devotion before turning away from the signing table. She heard Castle gruffly clear his throat before greeting the next fan – his voice slightly strained, something that was noted by Beckett alone, so attuned to him as she was. She knew the timbre, the tone of Castle's voice as well as she knew her own.

She turned the book over in her hands, opening it to the signed dedication page as she walked. The printed dedication was much longer than usual, he'd used a portion of Alexis' graduation speech but she knew the _always_ was for her and her alone. In his scrawled but measured handwriting he'd written, "_Nikki Heat, dinner at 6pm? I'm your number one fan…" _She could practically hear the man leering the invitation over her shoulder. He'd gone and ruined her perfectly good book with a dinner invitation. He so owed her another copy – with _her _name for a start. She contemplated getting back in the line to tell him so but thought the better of it. That particular conversation could wait until their dinner date. She spun around to face him, naturally enough his eyes were still trailing her from across the room. She nodded briskly at him just once, he raised his eyebrows with a smirk. The message clear to both of them: invitation accepted. She pointed to the floor quickly, Castle getting her unspoken _meet here_? He mouthed _yes_ and jerked his head up quickly in the semblance of a nod.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

Six o'clock hadn't come quick enough. Beckett resigned herself to the fact that she was pitifully early and slipped into the back of the bookstore once again as Castle dismissed the last few fans.

"Detective Beckett," he acknowledged her gleefully as she made her way towards him.

"Castle," she smiled softly. He took her in, noticed the edges of exhaustion clouding her countenance.

"Long day?" he queried gently. She shrugged.

"You have no idea. My partner managed to shirk his half of the paperwork once again," she sighed with dramatic flair that would have done Martha Rogers proud.

"Hey, hey," he objected quickly, "maybe if you started doing half of my paperwork I'd help you with yours…"

"Castle, you _make_ immeasurably more paperwork for me," she snorted.

"So do you!" he exclaimed waving a copy of the latest Nikki Heat novel in her face. Her jaw dropped. "That's right. You spend a day signing novels with and I'll do my half of the paperwork at the precinct," he added breezily. She swatted a hand at his chest, leaving her it pressed against him as he swayed closer to her under the touch.

"You ridiculous man," she sighed.

"Ridiculous I may be," he hummed, tugging the hand still resting on his chest to draw her closer to him, "but there's no denying that my fans are _your_ fans. They'd kill for you signing their novels as well." He stepped into her, closing the distance between them completely to draw her in for a lingering hug. She relaxed into him as he chin settled beside her ear, breathing her in.

"They'd kill?" she deadpanned, "that sounds like _more_ paperwork to me, Castle." She felt his body shaking around her more than she heard his gentle laugh pearling through the air.

"Oh my witty goddess… How did I ever get so lucky to find my perfect match?" he murmured contentedly as he pressed a gentle kiss to her hair.

"Match? Superior. The term you're looking for is superior," she teased.

"I can't deny that," he shrugged against her, alighting every nerve in her body tingling with the movement. She pulled back in his arms, a smile dancing in her eyes as she met his gaze.

"Perfect match," she acceded pressing her lips to his. The kiss was sweet, still Castle responded heatedly, splaying his heads possessively along the arch of her spine, twining their bodies closer. Neither noticed the door to the bookshop swing open, too lost in each other to hear something as trivial as the sound of a door latching.

"Oh my god! Is that Nikki Heat?" a voice shrilled. Castle and Beckett detached themselves in time to see the girl clamp her hands over her mouth as if shocked that she'd voiced the thought. "Sorry," she blushed, "just, wow… I mean all your fans thought something was going on…and oh, I am totally going to be Twitter famous after this…" she prattled on, clearly nervous, her face flushed patchy red. She was one of the real fans, Beckett could tell. She was clutching her book to her chest like it was her lifeline. In all honesty she reminded Beckett a little of herself at that age. The girl was about eighteen, a little mousey but clearly not crippled by shyness. She could hold herself together reasonably well in a – not so – casual conversation with a "celebrity" (as Castle so proclaimed to be). Hang on, wait… Twitter famous? That didn't sound under the radar…

"Castle," she hissed in his ear, still wrapped around him in a way that didn't exactly invite casual conversation with a stranger. He tightened his grip on her waist, acknowledging her. He fixed his bright public-persona grin on the young fan before him.

"Ah, well the thing is…" he chuckled lightly.

"Cassie," she supplied.

"Cassie," he nodded. "Well, the thing is Cassie, Detective Beckett and I aren't quite ready to go public with our relationship just yet" –

"My best friend doesn't even know yet," Beckett interjected.

"Oh, _oh_. Wow. This is _coolest_," Cassie squealed. "This is literally the most exciting thing that has ever happened to me!" Ah, that wasn't exactly the reaction Beckett and Castle had been going for. The girl noted their worried gazes. "Oh no, don't worry, your secret is safe with me. I swear, I won't tell anyone about this moment until you've gone public… Then, I'll write a book about it. Seriously. This is the best day of my life. First I get my book signed by my favourite author. I'm like your biggest fan," she beamed, before assessing the way the couple before still stood flush against one another. "Second biggest," she amended wryly. "Can I have a photo with you?" she gasped, excitement at the prospect shining on her face.

"Sure," Castle shrugged and Beckett moved away.

"With you too, Detective!" Cassie supplicated pleadingly. Castle grinned, mouthing, _I told you so_ at Beckett. She rolled her eyes affectionately in his direction before schooling her gaze into a polite smile as Cassie took the photo.

"Would you like Detective Beckett to sign your book as well?" he hedged, grinning at the scowl Beckett threw at him in response. Cassie's jaw dropped, she managed to force a stiff, yet enthusiastic nod, from her stunned body before Castle gently pried the book from her hands and thrust it at Beckett. She penned her name with sarcastic flourish aimed exclusively at Castle. He fought the urge to laugh and lost – a small chuckle slipping loose as Beckett handed the book back to the girl.

"Please promise you won't tell anyone about us," she implored gently.

"I won't," Cassie nodded, sincerity clouding her tone.

"If you do, you'll have the wrath of the NYPD's finest bestowed upon you," Castle teased as the girl began to retreat. She froze at that, swallowing roughly.

"Ah huh. Thanks so much," she breathed out, her smile slightly forced, a little scared as to the brevity of Castle's threat.

"Castle," Beckett chided affectionately. "See you, Cassie," she smiled. Beckett was good at reading people, she trusted the girl. She wasn't after breaking a story. She seemed genuinely happy and to genuinely care that they were together. Apparently, _they_ – not just he – had a fan.

"Bye, I'll tweet you," Cassie beamed as she left the pair of them alone in the bookstore.

"Castle," Beckett practically purred.

"Uh, yes…" Castle responded warily – Beckett did not _purr_.

"I believe you now owe me paperwork," she grinned sultrily, "also dinner."

"Dinner I can do," he smiled, taking her hand and leading her towards the door. "As for the paperwork," his lips quirked into the beginnings of a pout and his tone shifted direly towards whining. "C'mon Beckett, you signed one book. What's that good for _a title_ of a case report at the very least? It's barely even worth it…" He let loose a trail of sulky excuses as they ambled out the door and into the cooling evening air. Beckett laughed openly at him, her heart light. She loved this whining man-child and the life they were forming together. She was irrevocably certain that she would never tire of him and their shared banter. Life was good.

**AN: Don't worry, there are still plenty of familiar faces planned – I know in a sense no one (who's anyone) found out about them this chapter… Nevertheless, I'd love to know what you thought! **


	7. Chapter 7

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Seven

The airport was relatively uncrowded. A fact Beckett was immensely pleased with. The obscure hour probably helped. She'd let Castle finagle her into this weekend trip with his darn bedroom eyes and sex-laced tone. Refusing him wasn't exactly an option given the circumstances – she was human after all.

So, here she was, bound for a brief getaway with her impatient boyfriend bouncing on the balls of his feet beside her. He kept gazing longingly at the hands she'd folded in her lap, but the look she was shooting him clearly implied _touch me in public and I won't hesitate to use my gun_. It was hot. Still, probably best not to risk it. He rather liked being alive, especially now that he got to touch Beckett when they _weren't _in public. Mmm, life was pretty spectacular behind closed doors.

The PA speaker boomed with their flight details and they shuffled over to their gate. Castle had changed the tickets to first class behind Beckett's back but she wasn't in the mood to be complaining. It was sweet. Even though they'd agreed that she would pay for half. Well, Castle hadn't agreed so much as resigned himself to the fact that Beckett wasn't going to have any of his ridiculous plan to pay for absolutely everything in their lives. She wasn't destitute for crying out loud. Still, the upgrade was kind of sweet and once they were seated – away from the prying eyes of other passengers, she pressed a soft kiss of thanks to his cheek. He lit up in response, reaching across the seat to grasp her fingers tightly in his.

"I'm really glad you agreed to do this," he practically crooned, his eyes shining with the depth of his emotion. Beckett had to bite down on her lip to stop the full blown eye-roll that threatened to spill from her, she settled for an arched eyebrow.

"Castle, it was _my_ idea," she sighed. He shrugged.

"Well, I'm glad _I_ managed to plant this genius idea in that pretty little brain of yours," he replied coyly.

"Little brain?" she glared at him. So sexy, seriously, _nothing_ was sexier than a patented Beckett death stare.

"I stand by my declaration that you are so very cute when you're angry," he teased lightly.

"You know, the plane hasn't taken off yet," Beckett muttered dryly, "it's not too late for me to bail." Castle pouted forlornly. "I won't be kidding soon if you keep that up," she added, gauging his reaction. "Not your most flattering expression." He schooled his features into a soft smile of adoration, gazing longingly at the curves of Beckett's body pressed into the spacious seat. "Okay, I like that one better," she conceded after a moment.

"I'm pretty fond of this one too," he whispered, stretching his body across the seat the press an affectionate kiss to her lips. She parted her lips under his touch, deepening the kiss as her hands tugged on his shoulders pulling him closer.

"Err, I'm sorry sir, but you'll have to secure your seatbelt. The plane will be taking off momentarily," an airhostess interjected with a slight air of embarrassment. Beckett was forced to push Castle from her as he continued his assault of her lips, completely ignoring the slightly flustered airhostess. He was too distracted by his racing heart to pay the woman any attention. Beckett consumed every inch of attention that he managed to procure. She was the only woman he could see.

Beckett on the other hand, was all too aware of her surroundings as she took in the woman addressing them. Oh god. She shoved Castle off her a little more fiercely, keeping a hand possessively splayed across his chest. The airhostess let loose a silent _O_ as she took in Castle's face, recognition flashing through her gaze. Beckett tightened the hand over Castle's chest, silently claiming him.

"Ow," he yelped as her nails dug into his flesh just a little. The airhostess' gaze flitted to Beckett's and she narrowed her eyes carefully as the woman took the hint and backed away. Castle was still too busy watching Beckett to really notice the exchange.

She loosened her grip as the woman walked away.

"What the heck was that for?" Castle grumbled, rubbing at his chest. "Don't get me wrong – it was _hot_."

"You didn't recognise her?" Beckett hissed through clenched teeth.

"Who? The stewardess?" he queried, his brow furrowed, he hadn't exactly managed to draw his eyes to the woman's face, what with Beckett seated beside him all possessive and fiery.

"Yes, the damn stewardess," she groaned. "Damn, this is going to be a _long_ flight. You are so not going to be joining the mile high club." She paused, a look of agony flashing through her eyes before it faded. "Oh god, you probably already have," she muttered, more to herself than to him.

"Hey, what? No, I haven't," he murmured soothingly, grasping her hand once again.

"Sure. You mean to tell me that you and that damn stewardess just chatted in your four dates in two days or whatever it was," she seethed.

"Huh? What stewardess?" A female squeak that _didn't_ come from Beckett emitted over his shoulder, he pivoted his head, his gaze meeting Jacinda's. Oh, _oh that stewardess_. Shit. Beckett glared at the woman, but Castle studiously ignored her. "Look at me," he demanded of Beckett. She begrudgingly moved her eyes to his. "Nothing happened with Jacinda," he implored her to believe him.

"Jacinda," she ground out over her shoulder, the name felt like bile spilling from her throat. "Could you please give us a moment." The damn flight attendant really didn't need to see this.

"Fine, but, ah, for what it's worth, he's telling the truth. Believe me, I tried to sleep with the man, but he just wouldn't have it. I kind of thought that maybe he needed a beard," Jacinda shrugged, looking a little confused and very, very stereotypically blonde – stupid woman.

"A beard?" Castle spluttered. "You thought I was _gay_!" Beckett, pissed as she was, couldn't help herself, she laughed – hard. Jacinda shrugged again.

"I mean c'mon, I'm hot and I practically flung myself at you. If the designer shoe fits," she hedged. Castle couldn't stop his jaw from dropping.

"I wouldn't sleep with you because I'm in _love_ with _her_," he gasped. Turning to Beckett, he added, "god, Kate, there's been no one since Gina. I just couldn't, not when there was the possibility of maybe someday with you. No one else measures up. _No one_."

"Oh hey, I take offence to that," Jacinda intoned. Beckett couldn't help but laugh again at that.

"I'm sorry, Jacinda," she forced out after the laughter stopped wracking her body. "Kind of rude, Castle," she teased gently, "but oh so sweet."

"I'm sorry too, Jacinda," he mentioned sincerely. "It was wrong of me to lead you on like that."

"Hmm… I got to drive a Ferrari, so no harm done, really," she replied somewhat wryly. A service needed button lit up a few aisles down. "I've got to get to work. It's been, let's just say an experience to see you again, Ricky," the edges of her lips curved in the whisper of a smile. "Rick's lady love," she nodded at Beckett.

"Jacinda," Beckett replied softly, echoing the farewell. She turned to Castle. "That was certainly one of the stranger conversations of my life."

"Of all the planes in all the world," he groaned.

**AN: To everyone's who's favourite/alerted/reviewed this story I adore you! Let me know your thoughts on this chapter. I'm working at being quicker on updating, and I apologise for the general wait between chapters. As much as I'd love to drop out of uni and write full-time, I'm pretty keen not to end up destitute… Plus, I'm practically finished! Freedom… So close, yet so far away… **


	8. Chapter 8

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Eight

Beckett wasn't in a bad mood perse, she just felt like spending the morning in the precinct gym letting off some steam. Now, after a good, long workout session, she was sufficiently sweaty, and a conflicting combination of exhausted and refreshed. Exercise somehow managed to be totally draining yet invigorating all at once. Her muscles were still warm and loose from the training, yet she could feel the beginning hints of stiffness that would reside within them by tomorrow. That was just the inevitable fallout from a solid workout. She'd be stronger for it in the long run. Besides, what was the destination without the journey?

She was resignedly ecstatic that Castle was due in any moment with her morning coffee. She was tempted to get changed from her sweaty workout gear but she liked the way Castle's eyes hungrily traced the drops of sweat pooling at her chest. Plus, she knew he was fond of those few inches of extra skin her singlet revealed, she could see the restraint in his gaze as he held himself back from touching her in the precinct. He wasn't exactly kidding when he called her a tease. But, let's face it, life was just more fun this way.

She relaxed against the frame of door, casually waiting for her partner to step around the corner with that beautiful, beautiful scalding liquid of life. Okay, maybe she was a _little_ reliant – emotionally attached – to coffee. It was perfectly normal. She closed her eyes for a moment as she rested. She heard steady footsteps approaching and the heavenly scent of coffee reached her assaulted her senses in the best way possible.

"Boy, am I glad to see you," she sighed, eyes still screwed firmly shut. The footsteps jerked to a halt, not quite at her. She briefly wondered why Castle didn't reach out and touch her considering they were alone in the hallway. She pried her eyes opened and had to stop herself from cursing out loud. "Oh god," she censored herself to. It wasn't Castle. It was, it was _so_ the worst case scenario. Before her, with matching puzzled – bordering on slightly amused – expressions were not one, but two of her ex-boyfriends. _Shit_.

"So, which one of us are you glad to see?" Will teased. _Neither_ her mind cried, she was tempted to reply, _whoever's giving me the coffee_ but Castle would have a coronary and she'd practically be cheating. Coffee was very much _their_ thing. Probably not a good idea to bring it into this _situation_.

"Uh, I wasn't expecting either of you," Beckett articulated very, very poorly. There was definitely a lesson about opening your eyes before speaking in here somewhere. Both men brushed past her and into the gym, it seemed the conversation wasn't over as they both turned back to stare at her. She cleared her throat, kind of wishing she'd taken the time to get changed into, you know, a potato sack or something equally flattering and revealing. "Will, what are you even doing here?" she asked, a little puzzled now that she'd gotten over her initial discomfort.

"Messy kidnapping case mixed with a robbery, I'm working the case with Demming," he nodded at the man beside him.

"Mmm," Beckett pursed her lips, attempting to convey complete disinterest at the idea of her two exes working together – surely they weren't aware of the connection, right?

"Yeah," Will continued, "turns out Demming here and I have got quite a bit in common…" he arched his eyebrows at her, sweeping his eyes over body suggestively. Great. That was just great. Beckett rolled her eyes, seemed like the mature move.

"We're thinking of starting a club…" Demming chimed in.

"Super," Beckett deadpanned.

"Anyone else we need to extend the invitation to?" Will teased. Naturally enough, Castle the master of impeccable timing chose that moment to approach her in the hallway. Beckett was still leaning against the doorframe, her head inclined slightly in the direction of the men she was speaking to. She'd effectively ignored Will's comment and there was a natural enough lull in the conversation. Castle took the silence, and the fact he couldn't see the other men from the corridor to confirm that they were alone. He beamed at Beckett, leaning in to press a chaste kiss to the corner of her mouth as he nudged the coffee into her hand.

"Morning Detective," he murmured softly, his lips drifting to her cheek, the curve of her jaw. She suppressed a shiver at the onslaught of sensation. Demming cleared his throat and Beckett felt a steady flush rising on her cheeks. Castle froze at the noise, jolting away from Beckett to stare into the darkened room. He took in the occupants and didn't even bother to conceal his grin. He slung an arm possessively over Beckett's shoulder and pulled her body flush against his.

"Castle," Will greeted, his tone dry.

"Sorenson, Demming," he nodded at the pair of them. Beckett wasn't surprised that his tone managed to convey that he was gloating with even the simple articulation of their names. She could tell the man was practically jumping out of his skin to scream _she's mine_ at the men gawking at them.

"Not that I didn't see it coming," Demming started, his words seeming measured, "but I'm surprised I haven't heard about this through the rumour mill. The pool's still open."

"I'm surprised I haven't heard about it in the papers," Will added archly.

"We haven't exactly made it public yet," Beckett responded coolly.

"Mmm, but it's _very_ serious," Castle asserted, trailing his fingers up and down Beckett's arm, brushing his hand dangerously close to the swell of her chest in a move that wasn't fit for _any_ – let alone present – company. She resisted the urge to swat him away. She got it. It certainly hadn't been easy for Castle to watch her with either of these men. She could just internally cringe and let him have his moment. Besides, it didn't exactly hurt for the pair of them to know she was indefinitely off the market.

She reached up and linked her fingers with Castle's wandering ones, seeking a happy medium – he could stake his claim without groping her. It seemed an effective solution. It was a little bit petty, but she kind of liked the idea of showing them that she was happy – she wasn't a failure at relationships. Immodest as it may be, she was slightly proud of herself. She wasn't a shelled wreck of a person any longer, she was healthy and functioning. If she was honest with herself, it was all because of the man clutched to her so she was allowed to gloat about it just a tad. Judging by Castle's self-satisfied expression and the smug grin he was wearing he was proud of it too.

The awareness sent desire curling in her stomach, Castle was _proud_ of her. He wanted to show her off. He wanted the world to see that they belonged to one another. Considering it like that jolted Beckett's own longing to publically claim him. She couldn't yet though, they still needed to tell _their_ world before they told _the_ world. Granted, there weren't many people left in their world who they needed to tell. Mostly, Lanie. God, she definitely needed to tell Lanie. Besides, she was _proud_ to be with Castle and she damn well wanted her best friend to know that.

Castle had moved his attention from gloating to gazing tenderly at woman beside him, so clearly lost in her thoughts.

"Tired?" he murmured.

"Mmm," she acceded, the buzz from the workout wearing off. He nudged the coffee in her hand.

"Drink it, love. It's going to go cold," monikers as such were usually off limits but Beckett let it slide, given the circumstances.

"Thank you," she breathed, turning her head to press a soft kiss to the underside of his jaw. She inclined her face towards her exes momentarily. "Very serious," she echoed Castle's declaration, ignoring the awkward delay between his words and hers. "We've got to get to work. Good luck on your case guys," she added politely. She pushed Castle out into the hallway, following him out, knowing full well the other men were still within ear shot, she stage whispered sultrily, "you gonna help me change, Castle?" He merely gaped at her before planting a hand firmly on her lower back, guiding her towards the locker room. They were still close enough to hear Demming and Sorenson pick their conversation back up –

"It really does seem serious," Will blurted out, his tone a little surprised.

"I can't believe you sound so shocked… He's been in love with her for years, it's common knowledge," Demming shrugged.

"Yeah, but she doesn't commit – not fully. The job always comes first," Will argued.

"I guess not anymore…" Demming replied. The voices trailed off as the men retreated further into the gym.

"You know that you're more important to me than my job, right," Beckett asked Castle quietly, her insecurities raring at the words of her exes.

"Of course. Remember, how I talked you into coming back just the other month? You love your job, but _you just want me_, if you recall," he grinned, running his fingers tenderly over the patch of skin on her back where his hand lay.

"Mmm," she agreed. "I still stand by that statement."

"Good. That's all I ask for the rest of our lives," she could feel the smile in his voice as he pressed his lips to the top of her head. "Now, aren't we supposed to be undressing you?" he hinted, his tone taking on a leering quality that set Beckett's nerves trembling.

"Dressing me, Castle, we're supposed to be dressing me," she whispered teasingly.

"Semantics," he sighed, holding the door to the locker room open. She stepped inside and glanced back up at him with a wicked glint in her eyes. He followed her into the room, pushing the door shut with a clunk as he latched the lock in place and advanced on her with a predatory grin.

**AN: Look, I'm updating – it's like Christmas! (I love Christmas, Christmas is the best – I digress). Uh, so the update regularity may drop back off for a few days. I have a bunch of job applications to fill out… Super fun, I assure you. But, stick with me, I'll be back! Reviews are love, reviews are like Christmas. I'm picking up on a theme here – it's subtle, you may have missed it ;) **


	9. Chapter 9

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Nine

The date had gone well. Really well if the way Beckett was shoving her tongue down his throat was any indication. They'd given up on any semblance of self-control in the elevator and were now stumbling blindly through the corridor, bodies pressed heatedly together.

Beckett managed to shove her hand into his pants pocket and withdraw the loft key.

"I think you were looking for something else down there," he teased, aiming for light but his voice was too rough with longing.

"Shut up, and get me inside," Beckett groused.

"You mean I should get inside…"

"Castle," she groaned, cutting him off with a needy kiss. He gave up on finishing – responding to her kiss seemed much more important. Together they managed to feel – in so many more ways than one – their way into the loft. Buttons started flying open, the need for skin on skin eclipsing all else.

A shrill giggle stopped Beckett in her tracks, her hands wavering at Castle's belt. Not just a giggle, many giggles – too many to be coming from one person. The giggling increased, mixing with a frustrated sigh from Alexis –

"Really, Dad?" she moaned. Beckett shoved Castle's hands from groping her arse and jumped back from him like she'd been burnt. She squinted through the haze of lust to take in the occupants of the room. Alexis, surrounded by a gaggle of teenage girls stared back at her. Castle's daughter was blushing furiously, but the others all looked liked they'd stumbled onto their favourite not-so-appropriate-for-network television show. Amusement painted their faces, clearly appreciating what Alexis did not – the tables were turned on the adults and they were in a position of power. Alexis, on the other hand gave the impression that she'd appreciate if the floor opened her up and swallowed her whole – or, her father and his girlfriend for that matter.

Beckett and Castle rearranged themselves, aiming for an air of elegance. Unfortunately, aiming did not guarantee succeeding.

"Err, Alexis," Castle cleared his throat, hoping the heady air of lust would dissipate, "I thought you were going out…"

"I _am_," the girl groaned, "and after that performance I don't think I'm ever coming back."

"I'm sorry, Alexis, friend's of Alexis," Beckett chimed in sincerely.

"It's not your fault, Kate," the girl replied with a sigh, then taking in their dishevelled appearances, archly added, "well, maybe it is a little your fault."

"Totally her fault," Castle exclaimed. Beckett levelled him with a glare. "Sorry?" he cautiously offered Alexis.

"Begrudgingly accepted. My friends really didn't need to see that," she shook her head at the pair of them. "We're going out, I'll be back later tonight – try to remember that when you're in the kid friendly zones of the house."

"Love you, sweetie," Castle called out, sinking onto the couch, pulling Beckett with him. He scrunched his eyes tightly together, inhaling a measured rush of air. "Tell me they've left?" he murmured in Beckett's ear, his breath brushing softly over the fine hairs at the back of her neck. She bit back the urge to shiver – he'd probably think that it was a shudder of agonising embarrassment.

"They've left, Castle," she sighed, unconsciously leaning further into him, seeking the warmth radiating from his body.

"Thank god," he groaned, "I think that was the most embarrassing moment of my life. I've never seen Alexis look so red."

"Are you kidding me?" Beckett hissed. "_That_ was the most embarrassing moment of your life? What about when _Alexis_ found out? Oh wait, that was only mortifying for me," she ground out.

"You know what?" Castle grinned teasingly, ignoring Beckett's tone, "you're right, Alexis was _definitely_ redder then. Kind of reminded me of a sunburnt lobster actually. It was cute. You were red too. What shade is stronger than sunburnt lobster?" Beckett poked him – hard – in between a couple of ribs. "Ouch," he bellowed petulantly.

"I thought so," she smirked. She resettled against him, leaning her head back, reliving the awkward morning after experience…

_Alexis pushed the door to the loft open silently, she was exhausted. She had planned on staying with her friends for lunch but they'd pulled an all-nighter and she'd opted for heading home to get a decent sleep as opposed to napping in a crowded living room. She loved her friends, but the reality was she also loved her sleep. As cute as deep purple bags under her eyes would be, she could kind of do without them – save that for college. She needed to bank all the sleep now that she could. She smooshed her face into the door, using the weight of her body to push it open. _

_She yawned, throwing a hand to her face to gracelessly rub her tired eyes. Noise from the kitchen prompted her to slowly flicker her eyes open. She was a little worried about her father. He'd seemed…something last night. She was fairly certain it was down to his little girl growing up. She'd seen the heartbreak in his eyes when he thought she'd given up on laser tag just the other day. She got it. She was going to miss him too. Despite that, she was __**so**__ excited for this next chapter of her life. Even her father's hesitance to see her grow up couldn't damper that. Still, it couldn't hurt to be his little girl just a while longer. A severely sleep deprived teenager was practically the same as a petulant child. He could baby her all he wanted today – bringing her ice-cream in bed and watching Disney movies was definitely an acceptable option. _

_As she finally wrenched herself enough from her thoughts to focus on the movement in the kitchen her jaw dropped – she forgot to breathe. _

_Beckett was jolted from her __**very important**__ – or so he'd assured her repeatedly – job of making Castle his morning coffee. She couldn't deny it seemed an appropriate gesture. The man in question had slipped into the shower, well, stayed in the shower after she'd dragged herself out – wrinkled from their attempt to "save water" by showering together. Clearly, their little – so __**not**__ the right word – session in the shower had not done the environment any favours. She managed to pry her pruned body from his consuming fingers with the promise of coffee. He'd pouted but eventually conceded when she'd casually mentioned something about coffee being an aphrodisiac. Whether or not it really was – it __**was**__ for them. Coffee was very much a part of their foreplay. With such thoughts on her mind, she paled instantly at the sight of Alexis. _

_The girl was gaping at her like the world was ending. They stared at each other for a moment, equal expressions of wide-eyed shock. It wasn't until Alexis' eyes dropped from her face and she blushed profusely that Beckett remembered just how scantily she was clad. Shit. With unsteady fingers she clamped the buttons of Castle's dress shirt together, silently thanking every deity under the sun that she'd at least bothered to put underwear on. _

_Averting her gaze from Beckett's face prompted Alexis to kick that breathing thing up again – probably for the best considering she wasn't intending on passing out anytime soon. The choked gasp of air startled her dormant lungs and she spluttered, coughing heartily in an attempt to catch her breath. Beckett's gaze narrowed in concern, she took a step to help the girl, hesitating as Castle's voice rang out from the bedroom – _

"_Beckett, you okay?" Alexis motioned that she was fine, sucking air deep into her chest to settle the coughs. _

"_We're fine, Castle. Uh, Alexis is home," she hoped her tone conveyed pleasant surprise more so than quivering fear – her voice was steady, that was probably a good sign. She trusted that Castle had gotten the unspoken message of __**it is of imperative importance that you put clothing on before coming out here**__. He would have gotten that, right? The mention of Alexis surely would prompt that response. _

_This wasn't exactly how she'd intended on telling his daughter about the change in their relationship. Things with Alexis had been somewhat strained lately. She had a feeling she wasn't the girls favourite person by a long shot. If the girl's pained expression was anything to go by, Beckett was probably spot on with her instincts. Damn. _

_She knew beyond a shadow of a doubt that the only thing that now had the potential to irrevocably tear her newly fledged relationship with Castle apart was Alexis. If Alexis disapproved to the point of an ultimatum, Beckett couldn't ever begin to comprehend the depth to which it would devastate her. She imagined it would have much the same effect as her mother's murder in the sense that she would be a shell of her former self – a lesser person restricted by walls and hurt. Oh god, she didn't want the walls again – it was __**such**__ a relief to finally bring them down. From where she stood, the rubble was the best view all round. _

_Castle stumbled into half the furniture in his office in his haste to get to the living room and his girls. If he could guess Alexis' reaction, he didn't foresee congratulations being in order… He was legitimately __**terrified**__ that she'd scare Beckett away, and he, he just __**could not**__ live with that. Every time he had said always throughout the course of his partnership with Beckett he had meant it. He wanted his always – __**their always**__. There was no way in hell he was going to give it up without a fight. Alexis would see. He would find a way to make her see. _

"_Hi sweetie," he exclaimed, flinching internally at the strained timbre of his voice. _

"_Dad," she replied curtly. Oh no. That wasn't the best start – not the worst either, but still. He flickered his eyes to Beckett momentarily trying to gauge her reaction to Alexis' icy demeanour. He laughed. He couldn't help it. She'd buttoned up his shirt all lopsidedly. It was adorable and hilarious. For the usually cool, calm and collected detective she just looked so flustered. He really shouldn't have laughed, it was such an inopportune time. Maybe it was more of a nervous giggle than a laugh? Still, god, she was so gorgeous. It was very, very distracting from the defining moment at hand. Beckett frowned at him. _

"_You okay, Castle?" she asked hesitantly, her voice soft. She cast her eyes to Alexis seeing if the girl understood Castle's strange reaction in some way that she didn't. Personal joke? Alexis looked as miffed as she felt. Both women shifted their gaze back to Castle who for some odd reason was now grinning very affectionately at Beckett. _

_He approached her slowly, shaking his head slowly from side to side. Beckett may have found it somewhat patronising under different circumstances. Did she have ground coffee smeared across her face or something? _

_Alexis swayed sleepily at the door, watching the pair of them with muted disapproval, but too tired to do anything about it for the current moment. Castle didn't bother saying anything, just tugged Beckett closer to him with the lapels of the shirt and set about straightening the buttons. She swatted his hands away, eyes on Alexis. _

"_What? Clearly you can't dress yourself. Let me fix it," he murmured – his words for her alone, but loud enough for Alexis to hear. _

"_Call me incompetent again, I dare you," she griped. When she moved her hands to fix it herself they were shaking slightly. It appeared Alexis' unexpected presence unnerved her a little more than she was comfortable with. "Fine," she sighed, "you're just lucky I love you." Alexis' gasp was audible. She flew from the door and stumbled towards them. _

"_You love him?" she gaped. There was no point denying that she wasn't exactly ecstatic about the way Beckett had been slowly breaking her father's heart over the past couple of years. Despite her hang ups, she knew that this, Beckett throwing out __**I love yous**__ in causal conversation, would change something for her father. __**Had**__ changed something for her father. The way he was looking at Beckett now, it was different from the smitten, puppy dog eyes of old. There was a new certainty, a security of happiness in his stare, something about requited love made him look at peace. Alexis didn't think she'd ever seen him looking that contentedly satisfied. There was an old photo she'd hung on her walls years ago of her young father gazing at his newborn baby. The look of bliss in his eyes then filled her heart with joy every time she looked at it and this, the way he was looking at Beckett now, it was the closest she'd ever seen to recapturing that image. He really, really loved Kate Beckett there was no denying it. _

"_Yes, Alexis, I really do," Beckett murmured gently, with a strength of surety that echoed far beyond her words. Her response cut through Alexis' thoughts and the young woman fixed her gaze on Beckett assessing her claim. She was startled to see a mirror of her father's content certainty reflected in the detective's answering gaze. Oh god, that changed everything, didn't it? If her father's muse was in love with her father as much as he was with her? That was a good thing. Well, it should be a good thing. Beckett was yet to prove herself to the girl though and Alexis wasn't inclined to trust her easily. _

"_Okay," she nodded. "I'll have you know, Detective, I work in a morgue. If you hurt my father, Lanie will teach me how to make your death look like an accident – she talks about how to do that a lot, it's a little weird," her tone was deadly serious. However, with the last part Beckett didn't know whether to laugh or cry. She settled for nodding solemnly. _

"_You have my word. I will do __**everything **__in my power not to hurt your father," there was no doubting the sincerity that rang through her words. _

"_I'm not saying I'm cool with this," Alexis added gesturing between the pair of them, "but, I will allow it," she conceded. "Don't make me regret my decision," she threw over her shoulder as she moved away from them, ascending the stairs. _

"I think she's warmed to you since that first encounter," Castle grinned.

"Well, I am pretty loveable," Beckett rolled her eyes, sarcasm the overriding feature of her tone.

"I know, I tell you that all the time!" Castle, on the other hand, opted for complete sincerity.

"Mmm, speaking of loveable, weren't we in the middle of something?" she hinted, her lips twisting in the curl of a seductive smile.

"Able and loving right here," he gestured wildly at himself, eyes lighting up. Beckett let loose a pearl of laughter before allowing Castle to tug her to her feet and lead her unceremoniously into the bedroom, his lips devouring hers.

**AN: Word claims that "smooshed" isn't a word. I disagree – it's inherently entrenched in my vocabulary. Alternatively, I read/heard somewhere that making up words is the mark of genius – Shakespeare did it all the time – so yeah, let's go with that… **

**Also, I feel like this chapter may be contested somewhat. There are many variations of Alexis out there and I've tried to represent how I think her character **_**may**_** react. In all honesty, I'm inclined to think she'll take it worse than this on the show – I'm aiming for levity, not angst with this story though and the version of her presented in this works for that. **

**As always, please let me know what you thought! **

**(P.S. Job applications are tedious – fic writing is much more gratifying, hence the quicker than anticipated update…) **


	10. Chapter 10

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Ten

Alexis enjoyed her time in the morgue. To be honest, it wasn't due entirely to the career – it was more the atmosphere, as morbid as that sounded. Lanie just had this air of _fun_ surrounded her, like she knew how to live her life and was damn sure she was going to fight tooth and nail to get exactly what she wanted. Early on in their professional relationship, they'd established some unspoken ground rules, girl talk did _not_ encompass anything to do with her father and the striking detective. Lanie had picked up on the sensitive nature of that particular topic and so it failed to rise within their conversations.

That didn't stop the ME from sneaking in a few questions about Castle's social agenda over the time they spent together, but it was subtle-_ish_. Given the unique nature of her childhood, Alexis really hadn't respected many of the female role models in her life – apart from her grandmother, but that was an unusual brand of admiration. She found herself liking Lanie, the woman's evident zest and brutal honesty marking her as someone worthy of esteem. They fell into casual conversation as they worked, today's dialogue focussing on Castle and Beckett's recent arrest. Alexis had heard the _Castle version_ from her father and was animatedly filling Lanie in on the unique lens through which her father had seen the event unfold.

"So, Dad's standing there dumbstruck – although, I think his wording was, in _awe_ – as Kate drops this massive guy to the floor, just by sticking out a heel and tripping him," she smirked, with arched eyebrows, waiting on Lanie's commentary.

Lanie hesitated, the scalpel awkwardly raised hovering over the corpse. She studied Alexis with a surprising intensity given the light-hearted nature of their conversation.

"Kate…" she mouthed, barely a whisper of a word.

"Huh?" Alexis queried, assuming she'd misheard.

"You keep calling Kate, _Kate_," Lanie asserted slowly, measuring her words as the gravity of the statement hit her.

"So… You call her Kate?" Alexis quirked her brow at the ME.

"Nuh-uh, not the point. _You_ call her Detective Beckett. So why the change to Kate?" Lanie's tone was a blunt challenge. Alexis didn't think declining was an option.

"She tells me to call her Kate," Alexis offered weakly.

"That doesn't fly, she's been telling you that for years," Lanie replied with a shake of her head. "You want to try again?"

"Ah, um," Alexis shook her head with a sigh. "Less syllables. It's a reflection of my laziness?" she shrugged.

"Girl is so busted. You sit tight. I'm going to go have a word to _Kate_," Lanie groused.

"Oh, you mean Detective Beckett?" Alexis muttered under her breath – the retort lacked bite, given the meek manner in which it was delivered. Nonetheless, Lanie levelled her with the most impressive death glare that she'd ever seen the woman produce – that in itself was certainly saying something.

"Don't start with me Alexis Castle," she warned. "You do not want to see me mad," she tossed over her shoulder as the door swung to close behind her. Alexis waited until she was sure the woman was out of earshot before fixing her gaze on the corpse –

"I don't think _Kate_ wants to see her mad either. Lanie's a little crazy." The corpse naturally enough uttered no response. Alexis sighed, "and apparently her craziness is contagious. Super."

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The bullpen was basically abandoned. Gates was off at some bureaucratic meeting and the majority of the department had been pulled into an undercover bust. Beckett and her team were practically isolated in their corner of the floor. Apparently their situation had put Castle into an overly affectionate mood. Who needed workplace boundaries when no one – ignoring Ryan and Esposito of course – was around to see them? Beckett hadn't hesitated to insinuate that _she_ needed boundaries. Castle had missed – pointedly ignored – that particular inflection.

"Beckett," he whined. "Do you know how many times I've wanted to kiss you right here, at your desk? It's been privy to so much of our relationship already. It would be cruel to cut it off now."

"Castle, I'm not having sex with you on my desk with Ryan and Esposito watching," she replied airily, her tone loud enough for the boys to catch every word.

"Dude," Esposito called. "Don't make me arrest you for public indecency."

"What?" Castle spluttered. "I just wanted to kiss you… But it's nice to know _that's_ what's on your mind," he leered across the desk at her. She fixed her gaze longingly on the desk and let out a steady sigh –

"Well, I do love this desk…"

"Tease," he pouted. Ryan and Esposito gave up all pretence of paperwork and rolled their chairs over to join the conversation. Castle took their presence as a natural opportunity to shuffle his chair closer to Beckett's – much closer. Beckett didn't bother to stifle an eye-roll as he nonchalantly slung an arm over her shoulder.

"If you want to keep that arm, I suggest you withdraw it," she muttered. She was so close now that her breath tickled the back of his neck. Castle liked the proximity, no way in hell was he moving away – she'd have to literally remove herself, or break his arm… It was possible – not likely, but possible. Castle was all for taking his chances.

"You're bluffing," he shrugged, jostling them both a little. She settled closer into him.

"Try me," she warned.

"I happen to know you're very fond of my arm," he smirked.

"Really?" she arched her brows and fixed him with an incredulous gaze.

"Mmm. You like my arm when it holds your hand, you like my arm when I carry your coffee," he let his eyes drift slowly done her body, "most of all you like my arm when…" he paused, eyes lingering very obviously on the slope of her hips.

"Castle," she admonished, her voice a little strained. He grinned. He'd totally won.

"What?" he smiled innocently. "I was just going to say you like my arm most of all when I use it to write my best-selling novels. It's no secret that you're a fan," he smirked.

"I'm a little disturbed," Ryan threw out.

"Castle, bro, I think you're going to have to pay for my counselling," Esposito added dryly. Ryan enthusiastically nodded his support.

"I think we all need to have a serious conversation about public displays of affection," Castle grinned. Beckett rolled her eyes, still tucked into his side.

"Definitely an appropriate workplace conversation," she griped.

"I think it's a good topic," Ryan smiled sweetly. Castle nodded –

"My man," he put out his hand to feed the birds.

"Bro, no," Esposito nodded at his outstretched hand. Ryan hesitated, before letting his hand fall limply back into his lap, leaving Castle hanging. He shrugged, turning his hand to Beckett.

"Hell no," she asserted, tone dry.

"Anyway, while we're on the topic of PDA, can I just say the empty bullpen so doesn't count as public," Castle carried on, ignoring the surly – he thought he caught a hint of amusement under it all – expression on Beckett's face.

"Hello?" she gestured at the boys.

"They count as family," Castle shrugged.

"Aww, that's sweet," Ryan beamed. Esposito lifted a hand to his heart in a gesture of sincerity – the smirk alighting his face probably nudged at sarcasm, thus Castle elected to ignore it.

"Plus, they already know about _us_," he added, Ryan's smile fell slightly at that line of reasoning.

"I'm surprised you guys aren't totally public yet," Esposito mused, "especially with how intent Castle seems on PDA," he added with a wry chuckle.

"Who does know about you?" Ryan jumped in, eyes twinkling with evident interest in his work 'parents' personal lives.

"Just family," Beckett asserted adamantly. Castle nudged her with a slight grin –

"So you're telling me that you count _Thomas_ the janitor as family?"

"Sort of…" she murmured noncommittally. "It's not like we planned on telling him."

"Don't forget about Demming and Sorenson," he gleefully added.

"Oh," Beckett's expression fell. "Maybe, a couple more people than just family…" she admittedly reluctantly.

"Demming? Sorenson? Seriously? So, that's it, three other people?" Esposito noted, counting on his fingers.

"Seriously," Castle gloated, "I'm not disappointed at all that Demming and Sorenson found out…" he trailed away Beckett levelled him with a glare. "Oh, don't look at me like that, you totally _claimed_ me. It was the hottest thing ever."

"I don't know, Castle. It was pretty hot when you defended me from your plethora of exes, Gina, Paula, the _stewardess_," she scrunched up her nose at that. Ryan's jaw dropped open –

"_They_ all know too?" he squeaked. Beckett shrugged.

"You guys are hopeless at secrecy," Esposito chuckled.

"Like you're one to talk," Beckett smirked. "You and Lanie were hopeless." Esposito opened his mouth to retort but Castle cut him off –

"Hang on, hang on! Paula is not my ex, sheesh," he hurried out in a whooshed breath of air.

"Semantics," Esposito waved a hand at him, Beckett nodded her agreement.

"Humpf," Castle hummed in disagreement. Beckett patted his cheek condescendingly.

"Fine, we all know that Paula's not your ex. I don't think it's really part of the point we're making here, Castle," she acceded.

"I can't believe you have the nerve to call me bad at secret relationships… That's a bunch of people," Esposito grumbled.

"It's not everyone," Castle admitted ruefully.

"Fail," Ryan whistled. Beckett merely glared. The whistle awkwardly tampered off mid-way.

"Who _else_?" Esposito grinned smugly. Beckett sighed and proceeded to list them off on her fingers –

"On top of those? Josh, a whole gaggle of Alexis' girlfriends," she blushed a little at that one. "Um, Cassie," she turned to Castle, "am I forgetting anyone?" He nodded his head in the direction of the offices. "Oh, Gates," she groaned.

"Who's Cassie," Ryan intoned, as Esposito gaped at the mention of Gates. Before either of the boys had a chance to be answered a shrill voice roared through the bullpen.

"Gates! Gates knows about your illicit love affair!" Lanie stormed into the room, eyes flashing furiously. "Unless your name is Kate Beckett I suggest you scram!" The words had barely left her mouth before Ryan was nodding in the direction of the break room and Esposito was flying after him. Beckett was sure they'd locked the door. Castle, however, remained frozen at her side. His arm suddenly stiff – his fingers wandering, tugging and lingering no longer. "That includes you too, Richard Castle," Lanie hissed. He pried himself from Beckett's side with a choked –

"Ugh," that Beckett chose to interpret as a _please don't kill my girlfriend_. He stumbled hurriedly to the break room, slamming into the locked door. Ryan flicked it open to let him in and the shutters fell closed. Beckett would have laughed had Lanie not been breathing steam in her direction. Her best friend had certainly been working on her death stare…

"Oh, Lanie, there's something I need to tell you. Castle and I are dating. Isn't that wonderful, you've been hoping for it for years," Beckett smiled sweetly. Lanie planted her hands on her hips and whipped her head from side to side in a severe shake of disapproval.

"Don't even try be cute, Kate," she cautioned, in a tone that Beckett could only describe as an order. Beckett wasn't the kind to be ordered around – by anyone.

"Castle tells me I'm cute all the time," she teased. Lanie stamped a foot in ardent disapproval. In spite of that, a small grin teased the corner of her mouth.

"That's actually a little sweet. Now, let me yell at you some more and then we can celebrate, because damn girl am I pleased for you!" Lanie smirked, her posture still very much pissed off. She looked a little ridiculous. Beckett snorted a laugh – it was completely subtle. "No laughing. We're still in the yelling stage," her best friend chided.

"Fine," Beckett sighed. "I'll admit, I could have told you a little sooner… Sorry?" she offered hesitantly.

"You do not get to apologise to me until I say you can – I'm not done yelling, I thought we'd covered this!" Lanie cried with an exasperated moan.

"No apologising, works for me," Beckett shrugged. Whilst the wrath of Lanie sent the men shaking and into hiding, it left Beckett smirking on even footing. It certainly made for an interesting situation, the strong personalities of both women left them fighting for dominance. Lanie rolled her eyes in a manner that revealed just how much she was best friends with Kate Beckett. "Was it just that conversation that tipped you off? I'm going to kill Castle, that man and his damn _PDA_," she mocked. Lanie actually laughed a little at that, then fixed her disapproving frown squarely back into place.

"No one had to tell me, Kate Beckett. I am no fool… But, if you must know, Little Castle gave you away – not that I didn't have my suspicions," she smirked somewhat proudly at her friend.

"Oh yeah, you're a real detective," Beckett commented wryly, "we've been together for months, Lanie. Wait? Alexis told you?" she gaped.

"Don't get me started on the months, Beckett – that is the _wrong_ card for you to be playing… Alexis didn't tell me in so many words," she added, with a teasing curl of her lip.

"How?" Beckett mouthed more than said.

"She keeps calling you, _Kate_ – fondly, may I add – it's like the girl actually likes you a little now. Dead giveaway," Lanie drawled with a wry grin.

"Oh…" Beckett smiled softly, her defences dropping. "That's sweet. I think we're okay now, it's not like she was ecstatic…" Lanie dropped into Castle's seat at that, giving her best friend a reluctant, but genuine smile.

"I think you've got a fan, _now_," she added gently. "Do you know who would have been ecstatic to find out?" she motioned to herself, picking her surly tone back up. Beckett grinned.

"Lanie, I'm dating _Castle_. I really am, and it's great… Better than I ever expected, but I was just so scared that it wouldn't work out. So, I didn't tell you, I couldn't tell you. You're my best friend, I didn't want you to see me fail in something we've all be hoping in for so long…" she couldn't stop herself from pouring her insecurities out to her best friend, Lanie cut her off with a wave her hand –

"You're forgiven. Conditionally," she warned.

"What's this condition?" Beckett questioned reluctantly.

"I need details, like I'm talking months and month of details – you will not be skimming over the bedroom part either," Beckett arched her eyebrows at the ME. "No, you will give me all the sexy details. If you don't, I will go to Writer Boy and he will cave because there is a fear of me that exists in that man and I will not hesitate to take advantage of it," Lanie added with a devious smirk.

"Writer Man," Beckett amended softly. Lanie's eyebrows practically quirked off her forehead, she beamed.

"Looking forward to those manly details," she hedged.

"Oh fine. Girls night tonight?" Beckett sighed resignedly.

"Yes…" she paused for moment, considering, "the other condition is you buy the wine."

"I suppose I should pick up the ice-cream too," Beckett muttered with a roll of her eyes.

"You do that," Lanie agreed in all seriousness.

"One more thing, umm…," Beckett glanced away from her friend's face to fix her gaze on the floor before she uttered, practically under her breath, "girl's night is at Castle's – I've kind of unofficially moved in…"

"You're living with Castle!" Lanie screeched, all anger at being left out of the loop back to the forefront of the conversation.

"Unofficially," Beckett muttered nonchalantly.

"Dead to me, you're all dead to me," Lanie seethed.

"Well, the good news is, Castle's providing the wine for our girl's night, so it'll be the good stuff," Beckett smiled, ignoring the fury colouring Lanie's gaze.

"Expensive wine will not buy my love, Kate," she pouted sourly. "Although, I suppose it's a good start," she added, perking up. "Now, if you'll excuse me. I have to go yell at your _boyfriend_," she grinned. Beckett beamed in response.

"Don't scare him away, I, uh, love this one," she said sunnily, fondness lighting up her features. Lanie squealed and gripped her friend in a consuming hug.

"God, I'm so happy for you! I get to be maid of honour, right?" she bounced on the balls of her feet, pressed tightly against her friend, awkwardly jostling her with the movement. Beckett could feel the happiness rolling from her.

"When do you think I was going to tell you about dating Castle…" Beckett teased dryly. Lanie smacked her shoulder a little too hard for it to pass as completely affectionate. She pulled back, looking her best friend squarely in the eyes –

"And for that, I get to pick the bridesmaids dresses completely, you have no say. I may outshine you on your wedding day – it's the price you pay," she asserted. Beckett got the feeling she wasn't kidding, at all. Super. Oh well, it was a small price. Plus, Lanie had great taste in dresses – anything she found would probably be better than Beckett's suggestions. Not that any of this was a conversation that they needed to be having at the present… "C'mon, let's go watch Writer _Man_ squirm, just for fun," Lanie added, a smile to her tone.

She marched to the door of the break room, Beckett trailing along in her wake.

"Richard Castle, you open this door _right now_, or I will break it down!" Lanie enunciated, her fierce tone clearly back in place. Castle jerkily slid through the door and into the hallway, running a hand through his hair, a little flustered – and a lot adorable, in Beckett's humble opinion. She caught a glimpse of Esposito grinning through the wedged open door. She fixed her gaze on Lanie and slid to Castle's side, her steady touch a calming presence.

"You know," she directed to Lanie, "Esposito and Ryan have known for _months_ and didn't tell you. Don't take it all out on Castle."

"Hmm," Lanie hummed. "I suppose you have a point – the man is twisted round your little finger, you say it's a secret, there's no way he's going to cave and tell. Javier Esposito, Imma need you to step out into the hall…Now." Beckett smirked as the smug grin plummeted from Esposito's face. She caught Esposito's hand flashing back to grip Ryan's wrist, dragging him into the hallway as well. She thought she heard an audible gulp from Ryan as they slipped past them to stand before Lanie with apologetic – albeit defensive – expressions.

Despite the two men now quaking before her, Lanie turned back to Castle. He was gazing unashamedly at Beckett, sincerely glad that she seemed to have survived the intense fury of her best friend. His eyes mentally scoured her, cataloguing for any injuries, physical or otherwise. He seemed content with his assessment. Beckett was momentarily revoking her PDA rules and absentmindedly running her fingers along Castle's, somehow holding his hand but not. It was a simple yet intimate act and as per usual, he was captivated by her. Lanie couldn't help the sincere smile that graced her lips at the sight before her. Seeing her best friend this obviously smitten – in _love_ – was worth the months of deception. That wasn't to say she wasn't going to milk it for all it was worth from her friends for the next couple of…years. She had to have her fun.

She was a little tempted to give Castle the _hurt my friend and you will pay_ speech, but judging by the man's expression, it wasn't really necessary. She'd known for years that Castle had absolutely no intention of hurting Beckett. Him hurling himself at Beckett to try stop her from taking a bullet sort of cemented that knowledge in everyone's minds. The woman in question noticed her staring and rolled her eyes, snuggling herself into Castle's side just a little bit and linking their fingers fully.

"We're just going to head home, see you tonight, Lanie," Beckett smiled, tugging Castle over to her desk. She glanced back at the boys standing tersely before Lanie. "Hey Ryan, you might want to leave now too, I'm thinking we don't want to watch whatever this is going to turn into," she waved her hands at the intense staring match Lanie and Esposito were currently engaged in. As the three of them trudged from the bullpen, she heard Lanie murmur to Esposito –

"Javi, I can't believe _you_ didn't tell me. Them, I understand, it took Beckett _four years_ to admit to me that she sort of even liked Castle…"

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

Alexis was in the kitchen fixing some sort of a meal as Beckett and Castle meandered into the loft. Castle pressed a kiss to the crown of her head.

"Smells good," he assured his daughter, brushing from the kitchen to deposit Beckett's gun in the bedside table where it resided – _her _bedside table.

"I heard you worked with Lanie today," Beckett nodded in greeting at Alexis. The girl dropped the spoon she was holding with a resounding clang. Her face paled and Beckett found new meaning to the deer caught in the headlights expression. She bit back a giggle and schooled her expression.

"I, uh," the girl gaped. "I didn't tell her, I swear."

"Tell her what?" Beckett replied breezily, fixing the girl with a quizzical glance.

"Nothing, oh nothing," she rushed out.

"Mmm," Beckett hummed. "She's coming round for a girl's night if you'd like to join," she smiled.

"No thanks, I have plan. Lots of plans. So much stuff planned," Alexis hastily replied, picking up the spoon with an awkward half-giggle.

"You're not usually so clumsy," Beckett murmured. "Are you okay, Alexis. You're really quite pale." The doorbell sounded and Alexis jerked, her eyes flitting from Kate to the door at a million miles an hour.

"Um, I think Lanie knows. I'm so sorry, I didn't tell her. She just figured it out and…" Beckett cut the girl off with a gentle hug.

"Alexis, I know you didn't tell her. Your father and I totally gave it away when she overheard us this afternoon in the bullpen… But you should have seen your face just now," Beckett teased. Alexis pulled away from her embrace and Beckett worried that she'd crossed a line with the girl, but she was grinning.

"You're as bad as my father," she groaned, her expression clearly bemused. "You should probably answer the door…" –

"Lanie," the women said in unison.

"Right," Beckett added. She hurried to the door, jerking it open to find Lanie with an irked expression, she hustled past her into the loft with a –

"Girl, you took months to tell me about your relationship, then you go and leave me standing out the door, _waiting_. Not the way to be mending fences I tell you," she muttered, winking at Alexis as she slipped into the kitchen.

**AN: Sincerest apologies for the delay between updates. I feel as if this one has been highly anticipated, I hope it meets your expectations. I'm really curious to know your thoughts – please review! **

**I feel the need to add, this is **_**not**_** the last chapter – I have at least a couple more in mind. **


	11. Chapter 11

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Eleven 

Lanie planted herself on stool in the kitchen, sharing a smile with Alexis before turning to Beckett, arms crossed. Looked like girl's night was off to a solid start – Lanie's surly attitude was intact. Just what Beckett wanted in her down time. Perhaps she was slightly the catalyst to her friend's bad mood, blaming herself wasn't going to achieve anything, no use dwelling on the past… Beckett was impressed with her own clearly proactive outlook on life – Lanie should get on board…

"I was promised high quality wine," she hedged. Beckett snorted her indignation, but set about plucking glasses from a shelf. She poured the liquid haphazardly into the glasses, speckling the bench with purple drops. She shrugged at her friend, wiped it up and handed her the glass. "Nice place you've got here, Beckett" Lanie added, appraising the loft. Alexis choked on the water clasped in her hand.

"It's fine," she spluttered, waving a reassuring hand. "Just went down the wrong way." Beckett blushed fiercely.

"Lanie," she hissed. "I told you that in confidence." It was Lanie's turn to splutter –

"You haven't told Castle that you moved in?" Beckett turned to Alexis, her expression frantic.

"He did ask me. I still have my place. Just, I knew he'd make such a big deal… So, I've been kind of having a test run… I should have asked you, I'm so sorry…" she forced out in a frenzied breath of air.

"Kate, _Kate_," Alexis soothed. "It's okay, Dad asked me. He thought _you_ weren't ready. It's kind of cool that you are," the girl shrugged.

"Oh," Beckett resumed breathing, her anxious expression diminishing. Lanie laughed, a booming swell that filled the air with joy.

"God, no wonder you didn't tell me about you and Castle. You're useless at communicating, Beckett," she grinned.

"Shut up," Beckett smiled, slapping her friends shoulder lightly.

"When are you going to tell Castle?" Lanie smirked. Beckett's smile slipped –

"Uh… Later?" she bit down on her lip, considering.

"Seriously, girl?" Lanie groaned. "Alexis, give her a time limit," she nodded at the girl.

"Umm," Alexis paused, mulling over her options. Deciding that Lanie's possible wrath was worse than whatever Beckett's silence could do, "twenty-four hours," she decided.

"Fine," Beckett moaned, turning on Alexis, "but when he gets all over the top affectionate, I'll be sending him to you. I will not hesitate to play the heading away to college need quality _clingy_ time card," she teased. Alexis giggled, nodding at her father's girlfriend.

"If that's the price I have to pay…" she grinned.

"Well, now, that's an excellent start to girls night," Lanie chuckled, immensely satisfied with her accidental meddling.

"Mmm, shall we relocate to the living room," Beckett commented dryly. The women wandered from the kitchen, Beckett throwing an inviting smile over her shoulder to Alexis. Lanie halted the girl's progress with her hand.

"Alexis, sweetie," she smiled affectionately. "I'm think you might want to skip this part of girl's night – unless you want extensive counselling," she warned. The girl flushed bright pink and Lanie chanced a glance at Beckett to see she was blushing too. She honestly couldn't tell who looked more mortified – it was hilarious. Highlight of her day (other than her best friend's happiness, but that was a given). Revenge had never looked so colourful; it was a vivid shade of red…

"Oh god," Alexis shuddered. "I'm going to go away, far away…" Beckett mouthed an apology to the girl, as she ascended the stairs, blush lingering on her cheeks.

"Lanie," she chided her friend.

"What?" Lanie shrugged with a bright grin. "Don't think you're using the child to get out of the _details_ of girl's night. You owe me, girl." Beckett rolled her eyes and slumped onto the couch, patting the space beside her invitingly. Lanie took the unspoken cue and settled herself beside her friend. "Tell me _everything_," she smirked.

"What's to tell?" Beckett sighed.

"_Everything_," Lanie enunciated with a dramatic pout.

"It's Castle, Lanie. Nothing's changed really. He's still my frustratingly immature best friend…" Lanie cut her off with an indignant –

"Present company accepted," she coughed less than subtly. Beckett levelled her friend with a glare, before chuckling lightly.

"Different and you know it," Beckett added pointedly. Lanie winked and gestured for the detective to carry on. "It's great Lanie, it really is. It's never been like this before, I've never felt like this before…"

"And the sex is…" she paused, "waiting for you to fill in the blank here, girl," she teased.

"There are no words, Lanie," she blushed a little, her eyes glassing over caught in a stream of intimate memories. Lanie beamed.

"So happy for you, Kate. You know, the most important part of all – I wasn't _really_ last to know," she hinted with an air of smug self-satisfaction.

"Okay?" Beckett quirked an eyebrow at your friend. "Whatever helps you sleep at night."

"Oh please, I knew before you and writer boy did. I swear, I saw it coming from when he first started following you around… In a way, _you_ were the last to know," she smirked. Beckett merely sipped her wine, throwing an incredulous look in her friend's direction.

"I knew," she asserted.

"Denial," Lanie laughed. "If you're not going to indulge me in _all_ the kinky details… Oh, how did your Dad take it? How did Castle's mother?"

"My Dad almost gave Castle a heart attack, it was great!" Beckett grinned. "Martha, oh boy, that was something uniquely _Martha_…" She lost herself in the memory momentarily…

_Martha wandered the busy street, pausing from time to time to take in her reflection in the bright windows lining the sidewalk. She really was a vision in today's outfit. No wonder she was capturing the attention of hundreds of New Yorkers as they meandered on their way past her. It was both a blessing and a curse. She was surprised a young gentlemen gawking at her didn't get hit by a cab as he stumbled from the sidewalk. The unfortunate casualties of a world-renowned actress – "world" was an ambiguous sort of term, it loosely encompassed the extent of her career… _

_She caught a flash of familiar brunette hair spilling over the slim shoulders of the woman exiting the coffee shop just ahead. Meddling in her son's life was a mother's privilege she shrugged to herself as she hastened her pace to catch up with Kate Beckett. She wouldn't do anything Richard would disapprove of, just a friendly greeting – who knew where the conversation would progress to from there? It was only reasonable, she'd only just gotten back from her retreat to the Hamptons. It would be rude to ignore the woman after she casually ran into her in the street. Martha Rogers most certainly knew acceptable social decorum._

_As she came into step just behind Beckett, she noticed the woman had her phone clutched to her ear. Martha didn't see the harm in unintentionally overhearing the woman's conversation. Beckett was laughing, it tinkled flirtatiously and Martha felt she owned it to her son to listen. She imagined herself an undercover secret agent, sourcing leads from the street. The career was similar to an actresses in many ways, a second calling, perhaps? She channelled it, falling into step behind Beckett, stealthy and attentive. Richard would be proud. Or angry – it could go either way, depending largely on what she uncovered. She focussed her attention on the task at hand, thank goodness her hearing was acute. _

"_Yes, I stopped for coffee. Necessity… Calm down, I have one for you too… You foolish man…" Beckett smiled into the phone, chuckling at whatever responses her counterpart offered. Martha's interest was more than piqued. It sounded like a gentleman caller, of that she was certain. A caller Beckett was fond of… Oh poor Richard. She had to swallow a sigh as it rose in her throat. Her dear son would be devastated if Beckett procured another boyfriend of sorts. She had been right in telling him that love wasn't a switch. She couldn't see him ever turning it off where Beckett was concerned. The man was head over heels, the only woman he adored more than the breathtaking detective was his precious daughter. _

_Beckett continued, with a deep throaty laugh, "c'mon, fool is totally a term of endearment… Really? If you ever call me that to my face you will not be getting some ever again… No, I'm not bluffing... Do you really want to try me?" She giggled – literally giggled – Martha didn't know the woman knew how to giggle. She certainly seemed enamoured with this gentleman caller. As if Beckett was attuned to her thoughts, she softly added, "Yeah, I love you too, foolish man… Castle," she chided, "I just warned you about that…" She was cut off by a strangled noise over her shoulder. She glanced behind her to see a burst of red hair shrouding the shocked face of Castle's mother. "Uh, Rick, I'm just around the corner, come up the street and meet me," she whispered hurriedly into the phone. "Martha," she smiled tentatively, dropping the phone from her ear. _

"_Ack…" Martha ground out, vocal cords stunned into silence. _

"_I…umm," Beckett looked flustered. "How much of that did you hear?" Her cheeks tinged a pale red – there had been some odd coffee themed sex jokes whilst she'd stood in line at the café. Castle had been playing dirty, she'd been driven to extremes – as per usual. Although, she'd won – also as per usual… _

"_Oh darling," Martha exclaimed, finding her voice – and enthusiasm – as she swept the detective into a crushing hug. _

"_Beckett," Castle called, making his way up the street. "Mother?" he muttered incredulously. "What on earth?" His mother swung Beckett in her arms, beaming as she moved. Castle caught a glimpse of Beckett's amused yet slightly panicked expression as she spun – caught in his mother's whirlwind he added dryly to himself. _

"_Richard, join us," his mother chortled gleefully. Apparently she'd well and truly lost it this time. Probably to be expected given the copious amounts of alcohol she consumed on a daily basis. It was barely morning – surely she was sober? As he pondered the oddities of his family tree, he failed to notice his mother's hand snake out from her grip on Beckett and settle around his wrist like a vice. She dragged him in before he had the opportunity to protest. It was a strange group hug. Admittedly, he wasn't completely opposed to the way his body was pressed flush against Beckett's… He suppressed a shudder at the wave of desire coursing through him – given the proximity to his mother, it __**so**__ wasn't the time. _

"_Mother," he sighed, jerking away, tugging Beckett with him. She seemed grateful for the extrication, flashing him a quick grin. "I take it you're satisfied with this?" He flicked a gaze between himself and Beckett. _

"_Darling, I'm ecstatic," she beamed. "I'm taking you both to brunch. Now. I need the full story."_

"_We have a case," Castle hinted. His mother waved him off, rolling her eyes. _

"_The dead can wait, the living need __**details**_," _she asserted, grasping his wrist and pushing the pair of them in the direction of a nearby café. _

"_Martha," Beckett smiled softly, happy to have to woman's approval and willing to concede an hour of the working day in order to please her, "were you __**following**__ me?" she asked, a little dubiously. _

"_My lips are sealed. Don't want to blow my cover," Martha winked dramatically. As she sauntered into the restaurant, Beckett leaned into Castle's side and whispered – _

"_You are without a doubt your mother's son." _

"_Don't speak that over my life," Castle groaned, but his eyes were shining with a smile. _

"Beckett. Beckett," Lanie snapped her fingers to get her best friend's attention. Beckett blinked slowly, smiling ruefully. "Where'd you just go?" Lanie nudged.

"Martha," Beckett sighed, "she hugged me – _us_ – a lot. I think she was happy about it."

"You think she was happy about it?" Lanie smirked. "That woman has been setting you up on unofficial _dates_ for months. I think I can see how she might have been able to share in the joy just a little."

"Is it ever going to get old that _everyone_ in our lives was gunning for us to be together before we even were?" Beckett mused wryly. "I swear, we get married every card will read _I told you so_." Lanie chuckled.

"Rightly so," she teased.

"Mmm," Beckett hummed her less than enthusiastic agreement. "Would you like a refill?" Lanie arched her brows in a look that asserted _do you even have to ask_ and stretched her glass towards Beckett's hand.

"Kate," she called after her friend, halting her walk to the kitchen. She pivoted, listening, "it _is_ good wine. Our friendship may just survive the months of deception."

"It's nice to know you _can_ be bought," Beckett teased.

""It's certainly a step in the right direction," Lanie beamed, gesturing Beckett into the kitchen, adding, "although the service is a little slow."

**AN: There's a chance this one is less coherent than usual – there's something about the 5am airport run that doesn't increase my brain's capacity to function. Thank you so, so much for your wonderful reviews! I'll reply to them tomorrow when I'm slightly more conscious, just wanted to get this up before I lapse into beautiful, beautiful sleep… **


	12. Chapter 12

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Twelve

Castle had spent an entire day at the precinct last week studiously helping Beckett with paperwork – actually _helping_, not just creepy staring (that wasn't to say the staring was eradicated). Beckett had found it quite sweet, until the other shoe had dropped –

"You know what this means?" Castle had grinned, clenching and unclenching his fist, stretching out the strained note-writing muscles.

"You're finally starting to live up to the title of partner?" Beckett replied dryly, sensing that this was heading in a direction she was sure to be less than ecstatic about.

"I'm going to let that slide," Castle pouted. They both knew that paperwork wasn't the crux of their partnership – they'd proved the true value of the word to each other time and time again. "You owe me," he added, his wide smile slipping back into place. Beckett merely glared at him under the veil of arched brows, waiting for the explanation that was sure to follow. "I completed a very productive day of helpful paperwork, in return you will be signing books with me next Monday," he declared.

"Will be?" Beckett intoned slowly, deliberating her words. Castle flinched but held steadfast.

"Will be," he attested. "I've cleared it with Gates. Plus, Gina and Paula think it's a brilliant idea and that it will help my career no end." Beckett continued to stare at him, lips pursed. "Ah, and remember Cassie? She _loved_ you. She was so excited to see _both_ of us. That's the main reason. Think about the fans, Beckett," he rambled – aiming for convincingly. Beckett assessed him silently for a moment longer.

"To think I actually appreciated your help today, Castle. Never again will I let you do paperwork…"

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

If life were a lottery then Castle had won. He was seated beside the most beautiful woman in the world, his _girlfriend_, signing his New York Times bestseller. There was no bigger prize. Of course, Beckett was slightly surly with him, something about coercing her into being here… But she'd get over it; he knew that she was secretly flattered that he wanted to include her in every aspect of his life, even this. Besides, he thought it was pretty clever how he had done his fair share of paperwork in return – that's what solid relationships were built on, a little bit of give and take.

If Beckett was honest with herself, she wasn't hating the book signing. Most the fans were sweet, no one was seriously unhinged and the weird, overly-flirty ones had found it in themselves to hold back a little bit with her there. They still weren't official, but there had been enough rumours – and snotty unsubstantiated bachelor list comments – over the years for people to respond to Beckett's presence with the semblance of restraint.

It was actually a little boring, in a sense. Beckett understood Castle's tired tone as he signed her book after her shooting – sure, that particular time had been about more than just the tedious nature of having the same conversation over and over again. Nonetheless, it was somewhat numbing, the continual gushing and scrawled autograph. Beckett found herself revelling in Castle's natural ability to be charming. It was useful and endearing in a situation such as this. She'd been acting a little grumpy with him all morning – it _was_ fun to tease. Plus, he'd totally finagled her into it – if the man had just asked she _might_ (probably not, but the point stood) have said yes.

It seemed an appropriate time for her to begin behaving in a more forgiving manner. She slipped the heel from her right foot and ran her toes slowly up the back of Castle's leg, pushing the pants leg up, lingering on bare skin as she wrapped her foot around his ankle. He stuttered momentarily, before politely picking the conversation back up, the only discernible difference being the smile he was wearing was now genuine. No one in the room but Beckett was capable of reading the subtle difference though. She smirked to herself, eyes on the book in her hand. She pushed it over to him to sign, brushing her fingertips along his hand. He shivered lightly, and Beckett couldn't suppress her grin. His physical reaction to her was undeniable. As was hers to him, but that was another story. At the very least, the book signing was a lot less boring.

"Thank you," he murmured softly – supposedly for the book she pushed across the table into his hands – but Beckett knew he was thanking her for forgiving him for pressing her into the signing. She let her eyes light up in response, and bit down on her bottom lip seductively. He didn't have to say _tease_ for her to know that he was thinking it. He handed the book back to fan before stretching his arms out, creaking his neck from side to side. He dropped a hand below the table, pulled it up Beckett's thigh, squeezing in both gratefulness and carefully restrained desire. Heat pooled low in her belly, she brushed his hand away, clasping it gently before depositing it back in his lap. He chuckled lightly and leant forward to sign the next book.

Beckett had lost interest in the constant flow of fans, her attention now fixed solely on Castle. She signed each book as it dropped in front of her, but focussed her time on subtle, deliberate touches, just to let Castle know where her thoughts were lying – speed the process up somewhat as it were. Her attempts appeared to be generating a small measure of success in that Castle's conversations with the fans were becoming slightly hastier in nature as the day progressed.

Consequently, intent as she was on her plan of distracting Castle, she didn't notice how much a rabid fan was leering at her partner until she drawled –

"Your daughter is looking very grown-up these days, Ricky," with a pointed glance in Beckett's direction. Beckett threw her head up to stare at the woman. She was tall, blonde and definitely rocking the _mutton dressed as lamb_ look. It wasn't pretty. Nor was her commented warranted. Castle looked severely dumbstruck, his jaw hanging open indignantly.

"His _daughter?_" Beckett seethed incredulously.

"Must be your youthful beauty," Castle laughed weakly, hoping to infuse the situation with a little levity before Beckett shot the woman – he wouldn't have minded all that much if it came to that though. The woman was _insane_. Everyone knew that he and Beckett were _something_ – partners, friends, muse and writer. Any genuine fan.

"A real woman, a _grown_ woman, would have shown Ricky a good time already," the fan continued with a snooty purr. "I can show you a good time," she added, leaning towards the table, her breasts floating dangerously close to Castle's face.

Beckett saw red. Castle saw a disturbing shade of orange fake-tan. Beckett wrenched Castle's face from the woman's chest and pressed her lips possessively to his. Their friends knew, it was time the public did. Castle reacted instantly, opening his mouth to her, deepening the kiss. Paula rose from some way behind them, gesturing at security to move the now startled fan from the front of the line. A camera flash caught Castle's attention and he pulled back just enough to meet Beckett's eyes.

"You ready to do this?" he breathed, refusing to relinquish her face all the same.

"Your fans _need_ to know that you are so completely unavailable," she asserted fiercely. "You are mine."

"Yours, totally yours," he agreed. With that her lips were back on his. "Wait, wait," he pulled back further, keeping his hands firming latched on her skin. He turned to the line of fans. "Everyone, phones in the air, right now."

"NYPD," Beckett added with an air of authority. Castle beamed at her. He pulled his phone from his pocket, tweeting Cassie a single word, _Higgins_. "You have a code word with Cassie?" Beckett smirked.

"Duh. She gets to break the story to Twitter. It's only fair," he shrugged.

"Yes, but a code word?" she teased.

"It's logical. _The Eagle Has Landed _by Jack _Higgins_. Clever, right?" Castle grinned. Someone in the line coughed, reminding the pair that they weren't actually alone. He rose to his feet, tugging Beckett with him. "Everyone, I'd like to officially introduce to Detective Kate Beckett aka Nikki Heat aka my girlfriend." The crowd whooped and cheered. Whispered, _I knew its_ reached Castle's ears as he pulled Beckett back in for another smouldering kiss – her PDA rule be dammed.

**AN: I know, I know, epic fail on the updating – sincerest apologies. There's a solid chance this will be the last chapter. I **_**do**_** have a couple more ideas, I **_**don't**_** have much free time… I'm in my last two weeks of lectures **_**ever**_**! After that, I'm driving roughly 3000 kilometres to visit my BFF. I may add a couple more chapters, but, if you haven't seen anything before the 24****th**** of September then I will be marking it complete… **

**Thank you all so much for your support on this story – I'm so glad you've joined me in my hiatus venture. To the anon reviewers, thanks! To White Pawn, just as you run out of words to praise me, I run out of words to thank you – you're the greatest. I so appreciate every ounce of feedback you offer me. **


	13. Chapter 13

_Sealed Lips_

Chapter Thirteen

**AN: This chapter is dedicated to White Pawn – I'm sure you'll figure out why… **

Castle crowded Beckett as she stepped from the elevator and into the morgue.

"I'm just saying, everyone knows about us now, so I'm allowed to touch you at work," he murmured into her ear, his breath raising the small hairs at the back of her neck. Her body's physiological reactions a stark contrast to the harsh words spilling from her mouth in response.

"No, Castle," she hissed, distancing herself from his wandering hands with an over-exaggerated step.

"Definitely not, Castle," Perlmutter added wryly, stepping from behind them. Castle paused for a moment, before letting his hand drop the small of Beckett's back, creeping it lower as he nudged her into the autopsy room behind the ME.

"What have you got for us?" Beckett asked, all business, despite Castle's groping. Not that she approved of his current _hands on_ approach to work, but she understood his excitement about being public. No more secrets. Just them. Publically and privately belonging to one another. There was something about publically owning their relationship that made it more real – more tangible in a sense, not that it hadn't been before. Just, there was no denial when the whole world was privy to it.

Perlmutter opened his mouth to respond, clamping it shut to glare at Castle as he slipped his body even closer to Beckett's.

"I'm happy to have him in my morgue once he's dead. 'Til then, does he really have to be here?" Perlmutter asked Beckett dryly. She rolled her eyes in response, both to the comment and Castle's inching proximity.

"Oh c'mon Perlmutter," Castle beamed. "Aren't you at least a little bit excited to hear that I've finally wooed Detective Beckett?"

"_Wooed_?" Beckett muttered under her breath.

"Not in the slightest," Perlmutter sighed. "I don't see what the big deal is – hasn't this," he gestured to the pair of them, "been going on since like day one. It would explain the disuse of morgue space for all the little chats between Detective Beckett and Doctor Parish that I've had to put up with for years," he shrugged.

"Not a big deal? Not a _big_ deal!" Castle's voice rose in pitch in a manner that was oh-so-manly and becoming…

"Castle," Beckett placed a soothing hand on his chest. Perlmutter sniggered a little at his reaction.

"It's the biggest deal in the world!" Castle asserted with all the dignity he could muster – it wasn't much. Beckett had to admit, the childlike indignation was kind of sweet. Completely unwarranted, but sweet nonetheless.

"Major deal," Perlmutter lamented sarcastically. "Now can we get back to work?"

"I think the word you're looking for is _congratulations_," Castle muttered, his tone ripe with annoyance. Beckett suppressed a frustrated growl, sweet was bordering on downright frustrating. If Castle would just shut up about their relationship for a moment, she'd be able to get the case details from Perlmutter and they'd be able to leave the morgue. She shoved a pointed finger into Castle's chest.

"Hall. Now," she demanded.

Castle grumbled to himself, roaming up and down the hall as he waited for Beckett to finish up with the ME. Stupid man, it was a big deal. He was excited that they were finally sharing it with the world. The secrecy had been fun – and hot. But, he was resigned to admitting that they kind of sucked at it. Now that they were out in the open, he could stroll through the park with Beckett's hand clasped in his. He understood work boundaries – really he did – he was just feeling overly sentimental today and wanted her to revel in it with him. Their public coming out was almost akin to starting the relationship afresh and he wanted to celebrate it, mostly by touching Beckett – all the time. He was simply excited that he finally got to share in the moment with all his fans. Nikki Heat and Rook in the flesh, there was a certain literary magic to it.

"What the hell was that?" Beckett growled, stepping into the hall, advancing on Castle with fire – and not the good kind – in her eyes.

"Nothing," Castle sighed, he didn't want to argue with his feisty detective.

"Spit it out, Castle," she prompted, her tone mellowing slightly at his contained reply.

"I just – it _is_ a big deal, Beckett. _Nothing_ is a bigger deal to me, and to be able to share it with the world. Well, I really want to _share_ it – with everyone in our lives, I want them to be excited for us too," he admitted, still with a sullen air to his demeanour. She softened at his words, stepping forward to slip her hand into his.

"I'm excited to share _us_ with everyone too, Castle. But Perlmutter, really? Were you expecting anything different? He hasn't exactly been subtle in his love for you over the years…" she reasoned gently. Castle merely shrugged in response.

"Let's go find someone who _will_ make a big deal," he grinned, his countenance lighting up at the thought. He was met by a patented Beckett eye-roll.

"How about I hold your hand on the street?" she compromised.

"Deal!" he beamed. Neither noticed Perlmutter standing in the doorway watching their exchange, his arms crossed. He smiled laughingly at the pair as they waited for the elevator, Beckett leaning into Castle's side.

"It's about damn time," he muttered to himself as the pair ascended from the morgue.

X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X

"Oh, Beckett," Castle grinned devilishly, turning to gaze at the woman curled into his side.

"Hmm," she acknowledged.

"There was something worth noting that Perlmutter mentioned," he continued casually.

"Yeah?" Beckett replied coyly.

"Something about wasting time in the morgue… Any idea what he was talking about?" Beckett avoided the question with a deliberate shake of her head. "Really? No recollection? Such a shame. So, what have you and Lanie been chatting about over the years – or do I need to go back and ask Perlmutter?" Castle added with a completely fake tone of nonchalance.

"I can't remember _all_ the conversations I've had with Lanie," Beckett pretended to consider the statement more fully. "But, lately," she added with a teasing bite of her bottom lip, "lately, they've all been about _ah_ let's just say more _intimate_ topics…" she trailed away suggestively, staring pointedly at Castle's groin.

The door to the elevator opened and she strutted away, out of the building and onto the street with a deliberate sashay of her hips. Castle jolted after her, clasping her shoulders tightly and pulling her into a very passionate embrace – right there, in the middle of the crowded New York City sidewalk. Beckett responded enthusiastically, breaking the seam of his mouth with forceful strokes of her tongue, just because she could. He was hers and she was his and the world knew it. If they wanted to make out on the sidewalk in broad daylight then they damn well could. No more secrets. As Castle plundered her mouth with his deft tongue she revelled in the fact that their lips were most decidedly unsealed – secrecy was overrated anyway.

**AN: So, there you have it, the **_**actual**_** final chapter of 'Sealed Lips'. Please let me know what you thought! I'm so grateful for the support (reviews/alerts/favourites) from each and every one of you. **


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